The Price of Forgiveness
by Zippy 66
Summary: Toshiyan was trapped in the death game just like everyone else, but when an unfortunate lack of information lead to many deaths by his hand, including his sister. He blames the only person who could have helped him, The Black Swordsman Kirito. When the death game ends he meets the swordsman again. Can he find it in his heart to forgive Kirito, and Himself? I own the OCs/story only.
1. Prologue

Toshiyan walked down the cramped dark alleyway, alongside other members of the Knights of the Blood Oath, a great guild of Aincrad, and great other swordsmen and women. He looked around, he saw many with beads of sweat on their heads, they look as if they would slice at anything that jumped out at them. Whereas others trudged along more tired than anything else, some having no idea how dangerous this would be. All that anyone knew was that they had one purpose, dissolve the murder guild by the name of Laughing Coffin.

 _They have no idea why the_ _y're_ _here._ Toshiyan thought. _Perhaps that_ _'s for the best._ _Who knows, hopefully this will end quickly._ _B_ _ut if they resort to violence, which they probably will, then how many more people will die at my hand_? He pushed the guilt away and kept walking. However, it kept creeping back to him like a spider. _Most of these people would leave if they_ _know_ _what I_ _did_ _, maybe I killed a friend or a family member of theirs. Maybe they would draw their weapons in this very cavern and kill me if they knew. My skills and stats have caused much death, I have no excu_ _se,_ _maybe that would be fair._

His thoughts were interrupted by a hand on his shoulder, he turned to face a girl his age named Asuna looking at him. "It's not your fault, we'll get your sister back, promise." she whispered. She then smiled and walked ahead.

 _How is it that she knows exactly what I am thinking_ _!_ _How can she be so forgiving to a person that is not deserving. She always knows what to say to make me feel better._ _H_ _ow can she be so strong, not just in stats, but emotionally_ _?_ _She helps others and cares for me._ _She would lay down her life for anyone here and not bat an eyelash, especially for_ _her in-game boyfriend, Kirito._

 _I guess_ _Kirito is similar to Asuna in_ _a lot of_ _ways. He is strong, and is the best swordsman I know. He is so well known around Aincrad that people call him The Black swordsman, which is because he uses only one sword and no shield. He helped structure this raid and gather others to arms. He is honest and comforting with others. I stand no chance for Asuna compared to him. She loves him more than me as well. If he makes him more happy than me, than that is ok; she deserves better than me._

Toshiyan was interrupted when the parade stopped and someone got up to speak. "If the tip we got was good, then the should be nearby Laughing Coffin's base, but before we charge in, keep one thing in mind; those guys are red players. Once the battle start, they won't think twice about killing anyone of us. Don't you hesitate, if you do, then you're dead."

 _You should listen to him._ Toshiyan thought. _I would know._

"We do have 2 things going for us though," the man continued. "We outnumber them and we have higher skill who knows, maybe they will surrender peacefully; a guy can dream, can't he?" _I doubt it. If there is anything that I had learned here, peace is not on their vocabulary._

"Look out!" said a member of the crowd. Toshiyan looked up quickly and saw members of laughing coffin jump down from above, unsheathing their swords. Toshiyan quickly reached for his daggers and gripped them tightly. He then charged with amazing speed into the oncoming horde. He singled out a single lone member and lunged at him, dodging the murderer's first attack, and narrowly cut him with his 2 daggers. _That_ _'_ _s 2 hits, did that do it?_ The red player turned and prepared another attack. _I guess not._ He dodged his attack and weaved underneath him again, this time slicing more deeply with his daggers. _That should do it._ He was right, the man then collapsed, unable to move. He groaned in pain and Toshiyan jumped over him and kept searching for the passage he was looking for.

He continued to weave and slice through enemies, not killing them. Instead he just let them sit and have his daggers paralysis keep them down. _Where is it?! I don_ _'_ _t have much time, I need to get to the dungeon and free her as soon as possible. The higher-ups probably know that I tipped them off about their base_ _'_ _s location. They will probably get there first. I need help!_

"Kirito!" He shouted at the swordsman who just slashed another Laughing Coffin member. "Come on!"

He beckoned him down the path that led to the internal structure of the base. _"_ Hurry up!" Kirito looked at him directly and was about to go toward him, but then stopped, then turned, looked at something and ran away. "Fine," Toshiyan said bitterly, sheathing his daggers "I'll do it myself."

He lunged into the empty corridors of laughing coffins base, searching desperately to find the dungeon's hallway. He was so busy that he didn't notice a shadow leap out at him. He cried out as he crumpled to the ground unable to move. The figure showed himself and smiled. "I figured you might show up here sooner or later, _Electric assassin_."

"I can't believe you had to cowardly hide and poison me in order to subdue me, _Poison serpent._ "

He walked over and kicked him in the gut and he gasped in pain. "How about I show you what you want, little boy." he replied with cruel pleasure. He proceeded to drag Toshiyan to a dark hallway and past many empty cells and finally dropped him on the floor. The poison serpent then walked to the nearest cell and dragged its occupant on to the floor nearby him.

"Lyn!" He cried with relief, but she was too weak to respond. "What did you do, Serpent!" He yelled with anger enveloping his words. He tried with all of his might to try to move, but the poison was still too strong.

"Relax, we only starved her a little bit." He paused letting his words sink in while smiling cruelly.

"You," Toshiyan continued to struggle. "I am going to KILL YOU!" He fought with all his strength to move and reach for his sheathed daggers, but he still couldn't move.

"I'm only kidding," The serpent continued. "She is far too pretty to try and starve off, it would break my heart to see it happen." Toshiyan tried harder and could barely move his fingers now.

"When I get my hands on you, I'll-" Serpent casually reached into his pocket and stabbed him with another concealed blade thus strengthening the poison's power. Toshiyan cried in pain.

"Stop trying so hard, you can't save her." He pulled out a real sword this time and began to raise it "All you can do now," He raised it above her fully "Is watch her DIE!" He struck it down and a red mark appeared on Lyn's side. She cringed further, and yelled in pain.

"Knock it off! You want to kill anyone, kill me, please!"

The serpent turned, smiling. "The mighty Electric assassin, begging for mercy from a lowly serpent like me. I like to see you beg, do it again." He raised his sword above Lyn and turned to face Toshiyan.

"Please, don't hurt her." He was beginning to tear up now.

"Such a pity, she was pretty." The serpent then stabbed her again only increasing her pain.

"LYN!" Toshiyan yelled. Lyn mustered her strength and looked up at her brother who also couldn't move. "I'm sorry Lyn, I wish you didn't have to get caught up in this." He said, face tearful and voice choked.

She shook her head and said with some effort. "I-, I-" Her face was full of tears.

The serpent raised his sword and swung it down for the final blow. "I do appreciate sentiment before death, it warms my heart. However," He raised his sword. "It's now time to DIE!" He swung his sword down one more time and stabbed her in the side again. Her eyes widened with pain then drooped to a close, and no sooner had she been there, then she broke into shards and floated away into the ranks of the many souls claimed by the death game.

"Well, that was dramatic," the Serpent said as he sheathed his sword. "and yet, very satisfying." The Serpent turned to Toshiyan but stayed silent and unmoving. "Ahh, has the assassin's tongue been stole-" He was stopped when Toshiyan immediately grasped his daggers, stood up and charged at the Serpent.

The battle had ended and many of the laughing coffin members had either died or been taken prisoner. Kirito had been doing a headcount of how many people there were left after the battle. "We started out with 50 of the best people I know." He said quietly to himself "Now, only 38 of them remain."

Asuna hurried over to Kirito. "Everyone is a little bit shaken, but I think that-"

She was stopped when Kirito embraced her. "I am so glad you lived, I don't know what I would do without you."

Asuna hugged him back. "I knew that I couldn't die, for both our sakes, but where is Toshiyan?"

Kirito looked down. "He's not here,"

Asuna placed her hands over her mouth. "No," She began to tear up. "All he wanted was to make things right and he is rewarded with pain and now death. That's not fair!" She buried her face in Kirito's shoulder and continued to sob.

"No, it's my fault. Its because of-" He stopped because of a hobbling figure that was coming out of the base's entrance. Asuna turned around and recognized him immediately.

"Toshiyan!" She rushed over and embraced him as well. "Where were you, did you save Lyn, where is she?" He didn't respond and continued to walk toward Kirito. "Toshiyan, where is Lyn?" Asuna asked again more inquisitively this time. He stopped, keeping his head down

"She's dead."

Asuna paled. "Toshiyan, I-"

"It's not your fault, there is only one person to blame." Toshiyan glared up at Kirito, who paled slightly at his piercing eyes. But his expression softened and he looked down again. "The only person to blame is myself."

 _Know this Kirito, I will cope with you now. I will let you have Asuna, but I hope you never forget this, because I hope that this experience makes you rot with guilt for eternity._


	2. Chapter 1

**Sorry** **that I didn't mention anything during the prologue, I got confused. I hope you enjoyed the prologue, though a short one it was. This is my first fanfiction that I have ever written. I am kind of excited for this one, it is super awesome! I hope you like it just as much as I do.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

3 years later….

Toshimaru Yanada continued walking down the cold sidewalk, hands inside his jacket. It had begun to snow lightly and he looked up at the overcast skies. _I should have brought my_ _other coat_ _, I thought that I could go without it, but I guess not._ He folded his arms and continued walking. He looked around at his surroundings. The winter was dark and cold, and Toshi could guess how many people were hungry and desperate. _If I was to get jumped right now, I suppose that I could run to the payphone and-_

He silently cursed himself for thinking like he used to. _I'm not in that world anymore, I shouldn't think like I am. Most of the people there were monsters that were trying to kill each other. It's a miracle that I got out alive, but…_ He turned his head down so that no one would see him, trying to hide his already concealed thoughts.

 _But,_ _weren't we all monsters?_

He had finally gotten back to his apartment when he noticed a little slips in his door. Toshi sighed. _Oh no, is it that time already?_ He pulled out the letters and sorted through his mail. _Seriously, all I ever get is bills, and-_ he stopped at a particular letter that he hadn't seen before. He set his bills down and opened the envelope.

 _Toshimaru Yanada,_

 _It has come to our attention that you have not attended our high school for those who were trapped in the game of Sword Art Online. This is alright, but if you don't come soon, you will lose the opportunities to come and learn along with the other unfortunate victims. The government made this school so that participants, such as yourself, don't have to suffer the lack of two years of education. As well as you receive a friendly environment to associate with your peers._

 _Also, we became aware of the fact that several of the students have not shown up on our scans of the people that arrived in the game. This is harmful to only themselves and if you are at all aware of any others that have not gone to the school because they don't know about it, please inform them immediately._

 _Thank you for your time,_

 _R. Yamo_

 _Administrator of SAO S. Academy_

Toshimaru immediately crumpled up the paper and tossed it in the trash. _Why would I want to go to a school that reminds me of that game!_ _B_ _esides I already graduated from school with concurrent enrollment last year! Which is why I can live here by myself while I get money for college! I DON_ _'_ _T NEED IT!_

He emphasized his point by hitting the wall. The small apartment shook, and a dusty Amusphere fell from off his night desk. He looked down at the fallen machinery and calmly put it back on his table and plugged it in.

 _So, why do I care so much?_

His eyes drooped, and he looked at the small, digital clock that read 10:19 P.M. _If it is a price, I'll pay it._ he thought as he was lying down. _I just wish that I knew how I can be free of this guilt. How? What is it, and how do I get it._ He closed his eyes and thought about all that he had done.

 _Can I get it?_

* * *

"OK, Lyn, I'm dying here, where are we going?" Toshimaru asked.

"You'll see, I can't tell you your present yet, that's the point. Stop asking!" Lyn said teasingly.

"Can you give me a hint at least?" he asked desperately.

"No need, we're already here." She pulled the car off at the side of the road in front of the mall.

"Um, a mall? I don't need clothes and malls are boring." he mumbled, the excitement drained out of his voice.

"Trust me, you'll like this." she said with a wide grin on her face. They walked through the crowded mall, when Toshimaru saw a particularly crowded aisle with a long line outside of the section of the store.

They calmly walked to the other less crowded line and waited in it. "What are you up to Lyn?"

"Wouldn't you like to know." she said, still not disclosing any information. The line moved agonizingly slow, and he still couldn't see the shop window.

"If you don't tell me now, I'm leaving." Toshi said impatiently.

"Come on, we're almost here, look." She replied eagerly pointing to the now visible shop sign. "Harujan's Games: The one and only store for all your gaming needs." As the line advanced he took in new information. The lines split in half as they saw two signs, one reading 'Pre-ordered' was the line they were in, while the other line read 'Pay now'

"What did you pre-order?" Toshi asked.

"When did you become the man of many questions?" she asked teasingly.

"Since you still won't tell me why we're here!"

As they were approaching the front line, Toshimaru could make out a sign that revealed a title of the game they were waiting in line for. The game was _Sword Art Online_.

Toshimaru's jaw dropped. "You didn't. Are you buying it for-"

"Yep" she said smiling .

Toshimaru jumped up and down in anticipation. "YES!" he yelled.

"Shhh, not so loud." she replied while covering his mouth. "Goodness, you're 16 and yet you act like a 6 year old half the time." they finally arrived at the front of the line where an attendant greeted them.

"Hi, welcome to Harujan's Games, how can I help?" the attendant cheerfully asked.

"Yeah, I ordered two NerveGears and am here to pick it up."

"Excellent, what is the name under?' The attendant asked, fingers poised at her keyboard.

"Lyn Yanada."

The attendant typed the name into her computer. "That's 60,000 yen please."

Toshimaru's jaw dropped further and he looked up at his sister. "60,000 yen, this cost 60,000 yen!"

"Well, when you have a job that pays me as much as it does, it's not that much." she replied with a little pride. She paid the attendant and slipped away to go and get the items. "Two NerveGears, one for both of us. That along with the actual game, this is going to cost you." she looked down at him opening her hands waiting for the teenager to pay her back. Toshimaru paled. "This will cost about, I don't know, 1, 2 gaming sessions with me." she smiled as she said so.

Toshimaru jumped up and down in gratitude and excitement. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" He embraced her sister as the attendant returned with a bag of items. "Here you are, have a nice day." she said in a pleasant manner.

Toshimaru waited impatiently as they drove home. "So, we're going to play this immediately when we get home, right?"

"Of course, and you get to learn from the best teacher ever, me of course. After all, I did test it." She smiled to herself.

"Huh?" Toshimaru confusedly asked.

"Don't you remember when I went to the beta test?" Lyn asked. "You practically strangled me because you didn't get to go."

"Oh yeah," Toshimaru recalled. "well, that's because that wasn't fair."

They pulled into the driveway. "Well, you don't know squat about VRMMOs, they got out of the car and walked into their parent's house. "Mom, dad, we're home!"

Their parents walked into the living room where Lyn and Toshimaru were. "Hooray, and there's the birthday boy!" their mother said.

"MOM! Don't call me that! I'm not four!" he said embarrassedly.

They all laughed and their father sighed. "There are outlets in your room Toshi. Lyn you can set yourself up in your old room."

"Okay," the siblings said in unison.

Toshimaru set himself up in his room and plugged in his NerveGear to the wall, and then into the computer. He put on the helmet and switched it on. Two words appeared: **CALIBRATION NEEDED.**

"Lyn! What does calibration mean?" Toshimaru shouted.

"Just follow the instructions!" she shouted back.

"O.K?!" he replied. He put on the helmet again and pressed the button that said calibration. **Follow the instructions exactly.** The words flashed over and over. The calibration took some time to do, but when it was done he inserted the game and lay down on his bed. He heard humming as the NerveGear processed the game. Toshimaru closed his eyes. "LINK START!" he yelled.

Lights flashed all around him and he saw the process flash before him. This was all news to him, the bright lights stunned him slightly, though his eyes were closed. Finally, he was standing in a brightly illuminated room, and some words appeared in front of him. **Speak username.** a voice commanded. He thought for a minute and finally said "Toshiyan" It processed the information. **All done, Welcome to Sword Art Online.**

* * *

The next day, Toshimaru began the drive to his parent's house. He drove his car down the main road and thoughts of Sword Art Online quickly came back. He quickly tried pushing them aside and continued driving. When he arrived at the house, he waited for a minute. _I wonder if they knew what I had done,_ _if_ _they would still love me?_ he turned off his car and walked inside.

"Mom? Dad? Are you home?"

Toshi's dad walked in. "Hey, you came to visit." he said, pulling Toshi in for a hug. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, where's mom?" Toshimaru asked.

"Oh, she's is out right now. How can I help?"

"I came to ask you that question. How can I help you guys?"

"We're fine, stay and talk a bit." his dad urged.

 _Oh no._

"Sure," he sat down. "What is it?" Toshi inquired.

"I'm just curious as to how your life is going." Toshimaru's father continued. "How is school?"

 _Didn't I already tell him this?_ "Um, I'm already graduated and I'm now saving for college." he replied.

"Well, if it helps, you can stay here while you save for it."

 _That would be helpful._ "No thanks, I'll be alright."

"Are you sure?" his father asked..

"No, I'll be fine, really." _While being at my parents house would be tremendously helpful financially, I-_ He paused while glanced upstairs toward Lyn's old room, he could barely see the door handle. "Dad, can I go upstairs?" he asked.

His dad caught on. "Sure, let's go."

They walked upstairs and opened the door of Lyn's room. As Toshimaru looked in he saw familiar colors. Pink wallpaper, that he knew his sister had loved when she was young, but grew to despise as she got older. He looked at her bed that had remained untouched for years now. He smiled at the posters on the wall, mostly of popular bands and such.

Toshimaru's father put a hand on his shoulder. "I know you miss her, so do I, but she would want us to move on, live life happily." his father said.

 _No, she would tell me to go and die in a hole_ _._ "I'm glad that she was strong in the game, and when she died, I still had the strength to return and take care of you guys." Toshi said, mostly to himself.

They heard a door from downstairs open and close. "I'll bet that's your mother," his father said smiling. "Let's come on down and say hello." _Yeah, I think I will._

They walked down stairs and saw that Toshi's mother was back from the store and was stacking groceries on the counter. "Hi mom," Toshi said cheerfully. "How are you?"

His mom looked up from the groceries. "Hello Toshimaru, I'm doing fine, how about you?" she asked back, while walking over to give him a hug.

"Good, I came back to see if you guys need anything."

"We're fine, thanks for asking." Toshi's father said.

His mother went back to monitoring the groceries. "Honey, where are the eggs?" Toshi's mother asked while looking through the bags.

"I put them on the list for you to buy, we were all out." his father replied.

"No, I would have seen them on the list if they were there. Now I have to go back and get them." His mother said in a huff.

"No mom, I'll get them, I was on my way there anyway. It'll be no problem." Toshi said cheerfully.

"Oh thank you, you're a love." Toshi's mother replied. He was about to walk out the door when he was stopped by his father.

"Look, Toshi just for the record, I just want you to know that your mother and I love you, and no matter what we will always love you."

"Thanks" Toshi replied gratefully.

 _I know you love me now, but_ _I_ _'m afraid if I tell you the whole story, you'll rethink your position on that._

He drove to the grocery store and walked in. He went to the dairy and picked up some milk for himself, then went to go and get the eggs. _I am not sure how many they need, the 12-count or the 18-count._ He decided to get the 18-count just to be safe. He looked at his watch, and he had a panic attack.

 _Crap, I got to hurry for my shift at work._ He quickly bagged the eggs and ran toward the cash register. _Hurry, Hurry, HURRY._

He ran toward a corner where he would turn to go to the cash register, but he didn't look at who was coming the other way to. He ran into someone who had appeared out of nowhere, forcing him to drop his groceries. Both Toshimaru and the other person were knocked to the ground. "Hey! Watch where your-"

He stopped, and looked at the person that he had knocked down. He knew that person, red hair, brown eyes, could it? "Asuna?" he said the words almost afraid to utter them. The girl that looked up at Toshimaru looked equally surprised.

"Toshiyan?"

* * *

 **Well, I hoped you liked it. I would appreciate some helpful feedback on how this is going and how I can make it better. If you have some, say in the reviews. Like I said, I'm still learning, but I'm super excited to have joined the ranks of the fan fiction writers.**


	3. Chapter 2

**Hey guys, glad to be back, I hope you guys didn't forget me. Sorry this took so long, but I got it now, so please enjoy.**

 **Zippy**

Both Asuna and Toshi were struck with silence, each of them wondering about how the other could have been there. Toshi was the first to regain himself, and he immediately stood up and offered a hand to Asuna.

"Crap, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to, are you alright?" Toshi asked.

"I'm fine," Asuna started, accepting his hand and Toshi pulled her up. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, um, I was just buying food for my parents." he replied.

"Well that's nice," she replied sweetly. "So am I."

"Yeah, um, great." Toshi replied.

"Yeah, hey walk with me, I want to catch up. Is that Okay?" Asuna asked.

Toshi looked at his digital watch. _I suppose I could make it to work on time if I just brought the eggs to Mom and Dad later._

"Alright," Toshi answered. They started walking toward the cash register.

"So, what have you been up to recently Toshiyan?" Asuna asked.

"Me? Not much, I've been at my own place saving up for college. Oh, and my name isn't Toshiyan, my real name is Toshimaru Yanada, but most people call me Toshi." he replied.

"Hmm, makes sense." Asuna replied. "I don't have my own place, but I'm also saving up for college."

"That's cool, I mean, sure you get your own space, but having my own place isn't all it's cracked up to be." _It makes me wonder if I really should just suck it up and stay at my parent's house._

"Yeah, I see where you're coming from." Asuna said. _Of course you understand, you're you!_ After they made a quick stop back for Toshi's eggs, they paid for their groceries and left the store.

"Well I have to get to my shift at work, but it was great to talk." Toshi said.

"Yeah, but I have one last question." Asuna said.

"Shoot."

"What kind of VRMMOs' do you have?"

"I, um, I have an Amusphere, but I haven't bought any games yet." Toshi replied.

"What?!" Asuna said surprised.

"Well, I don't know what games to buy, I mean, there are a ton. Do you have any recommendations?" Toshi asked.

"Yeah, the one I play the most often. It's called Alfheim Online." Asuna replied.

 _Alfheim online, has a nice ring to it._ Toshi pulled out a pen and wrote the name down on the back of his hand.

"Alright I'll look it up, what is it about?" he asked.

"Well," she started. "It's about when you're a fairy and you go on quests, just like in SAO." She stopped when she said this, realizing the topic she just brought up. "Crap, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean any-"

"Don't worry about it, it's fine. I'll get the game, but when I get there, where do I go?"

"First, you should get your stats up, you could be very helpful in our questing." Asuna said. "I'll send you an Email saying when we will go on our next group quest. What's your Email?" she asked.

"Tell you what, you tell me your Email, and when I'm ready, I'll contact you. Is that alright?"

"Yeah, hold on." she said; she pulled out a small piece of paper and proceeded to write down her contact information. When she was finished, she handed it to Toshi. "Here it is, well I have to go, bye." she said.

"Bye." Toshi replied. He then hurried to his car and began driving to work. He kept the paper in his pocket as he worked, scanning objects at the store he worked at. When his work shift was over, he drove to his parent's house, they weren't home at that point, he hurriedly dropped the eggs off and hurried to the game store. He bought the game and went home. He put his things away and sat down at his bed, staring at the newly purchased game. He sighed as he grabbed his Amusphere and held it in his hands.

 _I haven't gone into a virtual world for a long time, and for good reason, but-_

He stared at the game he had recently bought. _I knew that this day would come, might as well be now._ He put the game into his computer and plugged in his Amusphere. He lay on his bed and looked at his digital clock, which read 5:30. He put on the Amusphere and turned it on. He could hear the buzzing of the Amusphere now processing the information on his computer. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath inward. _Here goes nothing._

"Link START!"

Suddenly, colors filled his vision, though his eyes were closed. He could see as the Amusphere ran its normal system checks and was relieved that the Amusphere functioned properly even after all this time. Then all went normal and large words appeared.

 **Welcome to ALFheim Online, please select your screen name.** He stopped at this part and didn't know what to put as his screen name. He then went with what he was used to. He slowly typed the name Toshiyan, then pressed OK.

 **Please select your Race.** the computer showed a variety of different looking races of fairies. He scrolled through the options and one caught his eye. It was a race that was colored a dark purple and with glowing eyes. _Hmm, that one looks cool._ He selected that one. **You have chosen the race of IMP. You will be transported to the capital city in Impish territory.**

Suddenly, Toshiyan was falling. He was plummeting through the air. He could see a mountainous region below him, him slowly making its way towards. Suddenly, a tutorial screen appeared. **To access your wings, extend your arm to access the control.** Toshiyan did so, and a small object appeared in his hand. He stared at its strange design; it fit perfectly in his hand and there was one small button on top. As he grabbed it he noticed a strange something grow behind him. Two bat-looking wings had grown out of his back. He looked back at the tutorial screen for further instruction.

 **Pull the controller towards you to increase in height, and move it further away when you want to decrease. Move it left or right to turn respectively.** _Alright._ He pulled the controller towards him and he noticed his fall began to slow. He continued falling and slowing himself until finally he approached the ground. He landed, and the controller disappeared, along with his wings.

 _Wait, I have to check something._ He opened the menu by swiping his left hand. There on the bottom of the menu, was the logout button. Toshiyan sighed in relief and he exited the menu. He looked around at his surroundings and saw there was a cave, where Imps were flying in and out. _Well, I might as well go in there, that might be where the capital is._

He went in the cave a ways and noticed that when he tried to reactivate his wings, so that he could go down the cave faster, he couldn't fly. _Weird, I didn't know that there was a time limit in flying time._ He put the controller away again and kept going. At the end of the cave, he noticed some dim lights that enveloped a city. He went into the city, and saw that there were not only imps, but many other races also. He snapped out of his stupor and kept walking.

He made his way to the weapon shop (After a few stops of asking for directions) and waited at the front desk. A large fairy then greeted him at the front desk.

"Hiya, What can I do for you?" He asked in a deep voice.

"Yeah, I'm new, what do think is a good weapon to start me off?" Toshiyan asked.

"Well that depends, what kind of weapon do you want?" the man replied.

"Daggers, is that possible?"

The man looked at him with a puzzled expression, but shrugged after realizing he was serious.

"I have just the thing for you." the man said, reaching for something under his shelf. He pulled out two small daggers and placed them on the counter. "I'm no dagger specialist, but I think that these will be perfect for you. Besides, no one buys these kinds of daggers, so if you buy them, they're on the house."

Toshiyan examined the daggers for a minute, and nodded in approval. "Great, I'll take them." _Besides, they're free and they will last long enough for what I have planned._ The man transferred the daggers into Toshiyan's equipment. He thanked the man and left. He left the cave and made his way into the forest. He could make out some movement in the bushes and a small monster appeared. _Alright, time to go to work._

—

Toshiyan spawned in a large town, where he was met by Lyn. Lyn didn't look at all like her actual self. Instead of having long black hair, she had shorter, brown hair; it took a moment for Toshiyan to recognize her.

"Hey, glad you made it." she said.

"I'm so excited!" Toshiyan exclaimed. "I finally get to be in a real VRMMO."

"You ready to get started?" Lyn asked.

"Yeah, let's do it!" Toshiyan confirmed. Lyn took Toshiyan out of the town and into a field full of boars.

"This spot will be perfect. Alright, so watch me, and I'll show you how it's done." Lyn said confidently. She threw a rock at a boar to get its attention. When the boar turned around, it charged at Lyn. Lyn drew back her arm and the sword she had began to glow. Timing her attack perfectly, she thrust her sword into the boar and the boar then disappeared into shards.

"Bravo," Toshiyan said. He pulled out his smaller sword and smiled. "Alright, my turn."

He to found a small rock and pulled it back. When he saw it was powered, he threw it at the boar. He barely nicked his ear, but the shot was painful enough to which the same effect was done. The boar turned around, revealing that this was the largest of the ones in the field. The two stared at each other in a calm before the storm. Then, the boar charged with all its might, Toshiyan did the same thing. When he thought the timing would be right, he thrust his sword into the boar. He swung down, but the attack missed. This accident resulted in him being knocked to the ground. In his fury, Toshiyan immediately got up and threw his sword at the boar, resulting in its death. A little screen, he turned to Lyn; she was bent over laughing and slapping her knee.

"That was the FUNNIEST thing I have ever seen here." she said laughing.

Toshiyan picked up his sword and glanced back at Lyn. "I wasn't trying, the sun was in my eyes." he replied defensively.

"Ha, let's try again, and this time, we'll do it in the shade." Lyn resulted. They worked all afternoon and were having a blast. They didn't do anything strenuous, they weren't very leveled yet. Lyn used her knowledge on the game to coach Toshiyan's timing and accuracy. They even worked up the courage to battle a bear. This had to be the best time in Toshi's life.

Until that moment ended.

"Well, that was fun, I got up to level 6, but you only got to level 4." Lyn said with pride.

"That's not my fault, you kept on stealing all my monsters! Besides, it's time to log off, mom and dad are probably wondering what's taking so long. How do you log out?" Toshiyan asked.

"Yeah, you're right." Lyn replied, almost defeated.

"You make it sound like it's a bad thing."

"It is, I was having fun." Lyn said. "I almost wish this game would never end."

"Me too, this is awesome!" Toshi exclaimed. "Thanks again for helping me."

"No problem, you ready to go?"

"Yeah, how do I log out."

"So here's how you do it. First you swipe your hand like this," Lyn did so as she said it and a small menu appeared in front of her. "then, on the bottom icon, you'll see the-" Lyn stopped. She stared blankly into the menu. She made no movement and there was a long silence until Toshiyan broke it.

"Lyn, what's wrong?" he asked. He swiped his hand and looked on the bottom icon and saw what was wrong. There were many things on the menu: the inventory, the settings, and also the character icon. However, one button was missing and put both of the siblings into a stupor.

"Where did the logout button go?"

—

After countless weekends and some free time, Toshimaru finally was able to put himself at a maxed out agility and night vision, and his level wasn't bad as well. The race he had chosen, Imp, had many benefits and few faults.

The Imp had excellent night vision, only rivaled by that of the Spriggans'. They could run on walls, and they could even fly in the dark. They're excellent at dark magic, and he could use a good chunk of it, but despite his hardest work, he still longed for his weapon of choice. The daggers he wielded in SAO, the Electric Dragon Daggers.

He knew that the castle in Aincrad was in Alfheim, but he had hardly been to it. He had no reason too, nor did he really want to either. Besides, he had other plans. He had sent an Email to Asuna, saying that his stats were high enough to where he could be helpful. He got a reply back that they were going to fight a boss on a floor in Aincrad and that he would be very helpful in their endeavors.

 _So much for avoiding Aincrad._ Toshiyan thought.

When the time came, he would meet Asuna and her raiding party in a blacksmith near the world tree. He was waiting at the meeting place for Asuna to show up. He was in thought when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around and saw an Undine lady behind him and she smiled.

"Hi Toshiyan," she said cheerfully. "I'm glad you're here."

Toshiyan looked at her confused. "Um, who are you?" he asked.

The Undine's face frowned. "It's me, Asuna."

"Wow, is this what you look like now? Sorry, I didn't recognize you." Toshiyan apologized. It was true, Asuna had changed from her normal red to a light blue color. Asuna got even more defensive.

"What do you mean 'is this what I look like now?' I look fine thank you!"

"Sorry, it's just that, you strayed from your normal look and I didn't recognize you. That aside, where is everyone else?" he asked.

Asuna smiled. "They're this way, come on." She led him to a small building that had a chimney that was spewing smoke. It looked like a blacksmith owned it, and he hadn't even been inside yet.

"Alright, wait here." Asuna ordered. She went inside for a minute and Toshiyan waited outside. _I wonder what she's doing? Did she forget about me? Maybe I should just go._ Toshiyan was about to leave when the door opened and Asuna beckoned Toshiyan in. He turned inside to see a variety of fairy races in the room.

There was Asuna, who was an Undine, and a Salamander, who looked vaguely familiar. A Leprechaun, two Cat siths, and a Sylph. The Leprechaun had pink hair and wore red clothes and had a mace.

The shorter Cat sith had a little dragon on her brown hair she wore to her sides. The other Cat sith was taller and was drastically different from the smaller Cat sith. She had a bow and a quiver of arrows, unlike the smaller one who had a dagger, and she had short, light blue hair.

The Sylph had blonde hair, and a sword clipped to her belt. The salamander look like he could have one straight out of a samurai movie. He had spiky hair that was kept up by a headband, and he to had a samurai sword with him, and it looked similar to the Sylphs sword.

"Alright everyone, meet Toshiyan." Asuna said excitedly. The small party stared at the new arrival for a minute, then the Sylph broke the silence.

"Great, we could use a new member." She said. "I'm Leafa."

"Uh, hi." Toshiyan said. "I'm Toshiyan, what are all of your guys' names?"

"I'm Silica, and this is Pina." Said the younger Cat sith, and her dragon crowed in compliance.

"I'm Sinon." Said the older Cat sith. _Leafa, Silica, and Sinon, good to know._

"And I'm Klein, but I think we've met, eh Toshiyan." Said the Salamander. _Of course, he was one of the people in the raiding party._

"Yeah, nice to re-meet you." Toshiyan said.

"And I'm Liz, say, what weapons do you have equipped?" Asked the Leprechaun.

"Oh, just daggers." Toshiyan replied.

"Let me see." Liz commanded. Toshiyan complied, handing her the daggers. Liz's jaw dropped in astonishment.

"Have you been using these the whole time since you've played?" She asked.

"Well, yeah. I think they're pretty good, they do pretty decent damage and they-"

"They stink." she said bluntly, causing Toshiyan to stop in confusion.

"Liz!" Asuna interrupted.

"What, it's true, I could make daggers way better than these!" Liz handed them back to Toshiyan. "You'll have to let me make you a better weapon when we get back. I'll make it on the house to."

"Um, thanks?" Toshiyan replied.

"Don't take it personally, she did that with all of us." Sinon said.

"You make that sound like a bad thing! I made you that bow from scratch, and you loved it!" Liz replied defensively.

While those two argued, Toshiyan turned to Asuna. "Is that everyone?"

"Well no, we're just missing-" Asuna was interrupted when the door opened and a Spriggan walked inside.

"Hey Asuna, is everyone-" Kirito paused mid-sentence. He looked at the new face in the room, but he recognized it in an instance. "Is that, Toshiyan?"

"Hello, Kirito." Toshiyan replied.

—

 **Yeah, sorry it took so long for me to update, I've had to deal with other things. Please guys, if you have any ideas how to make the story better, message me, or write it in the comments below. Until next time…**

 **Zippy**


	4. Chapter 3

**Glad to be here, 'nuff said.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

The room was in silence for a minute, until it was broken by Asuna.

"Kirito, may I talk to you in private for a minute?" she asked. Kirito agreed and they both left the room, entering the small alley next to the blacksmith's shop.

"Asuna, I know you had good intentions, but why did you bring him here?" Kirito asked.

"I thought it would be good, both for fighting and for friendship. Besides, you only have one other friend that's a guy." she answered.

"I do not only have one other-"

"Besides, I think he could use our friendship, don't you? He has been through much harder times than we have. He could really need us, don't you agree?" she continued. Kirito thought a moment, then he nodded his head.

"Yeah, you're right, he is a good person. We should give him a chance, he could use the experience to get to know a game where his life is not on the line, and get to know us without any pressure." Kirito said. The conversation stopped when they both heard a crash coming from inside. They rushed back inside to see that Liz had tried to pickpocket Toshiyan's daggers. She had successfully stolen one, and tried to steal the other, but stopped when moved away.

"Get back here!" Liz commanded. "I know I can do better!"

"You couldn't make one that fast even if I let you, besides, these ones are fine!" Toshiyan replied.

"You are just saying that to get on my nerves!" Liz shouted. Seeing that Asuna had entered the room, she immediately turned to her for support. "Asuna, tell Toshiyan that his daggers stink and that he should let me make them better." she begged.

"So much for good first impressions." Asuna muttered to herself.

Later, the approached the floor dungeon of floor 32. The party paused just in front of the dungeon entrance, Kirito turned around and addressed the party.

"Alright everyone, thank you for coming, now this won't be easy, but I think we can beat this dungeon. If everyone works together, we can get our names on the board. Any questions?" Kirito asked. Toshiyan raised his hand. "Yes?" he continued.

"What exactly are we going up against anyway?" he asked.

"We will be fighting the Spider Lord Nemron. This dungeon is guarded by his minions, the Spiderlings. We will do what we can to take on the spiders until we get to the boss battle. Any more questions?" Kirito asked again. When there was no response, Kirito smiled and pulled out his swords. "One more thing, if we die, then stay at the regeneration portal. But for now," He raised his fist for emphasis. "Let's go beat a boss." he yelled.

 _Not much has changed then, has it? He still is the Marty_ _Stu_ _of the gaming universe. Well, they probably only want me here until I forgive them. Then, when I do, they'll leave me in the street to never want to see me again. I have to establish a helpful place in this group, that way they won_ _'_ _t want to leave me in the dust. For now, I'll play his game._

Toshiyan walked through the corridor, when his train of thought was ended when spiderlings spawned in front of them and spotted them. Everyone pulled out their weapons and braced themselves for battle. The spiderlings charged and Klein and Kirito stood as the tanks, ready to take the blow. Sinon pulled her bow back and fired it at one of the spiderlings, the other two were taken care of by Klein and Kirito. However, after those ones were taken down, even more turned the corner and were charging them.

 _This is my chance._ Toshiyan stood in front of the spiders and magic furled around him.

" **Rex-Non-Al-Den-Net-Ere-** " Toshiyan paused a moment for he saw more spiders coming in their direction. When they were in range he muttered the last word of his spell. " **Drill** " he said. Immediately, dark tendrils erupted from his hands and they enveloped the spiders in dark cocoons. _The dark trap spell, temporarily traps the monsters in dark cocoons, making them easy to-_.

He stopped his proud thinking when a beam of light traveled down a clean ark, destroying the cocoons, but not the monsters. This made the unexpecting tanks be knocked back by the spiders. Luckily, both Leafa and Asuna switched in and sliced the monsters before any real damage could be done. Toshiyan knew exactly who had caused the cocoons to break. He turned to the archer who had just put her bow down and glared at her.

"Why did you do that?" Toshiyan shouted. "They were perfectly contained! Why didn't you just let them be killed!?"

"Because had they been there longer, you would have remembered that dark magic only makes arachnids stronger! You should know these things." Sinon replied frustratedly.

"If you had let them stay a little longer, then you would not have been here longer. If you didn't-"

"Knock it off you guys." Silica interrupted. "Let's just keep going." Both of the arguing party members glared at each other, but ended the argument there. They continued to fight off the spiderlings as they spawned. When they were walking across a bridge, a spider landed directly on top of Toshiyan.

"Agh!" he shouted. He threw the spider off him, and it tumbled into the chasm below. "Wow, that was close." he said to himself.

"Hey Toshiyan." Silica asked after that whole scene. "Are you afraid of spiders?"

"What, no! Why would you think that?" Toshiyan replied defensively.

"Well, you kind of acted like it." she continued. "That's alright though, I don't like spiders either."

"Wait, what do you mean 'I acted like I was afraid of spiders.' What's that supposed to mean?" Toshiyan retorted.

"I mean that you acted like you were afraid of spiders." Silica explained.

"Well, you would be a little freaked out too if a giant spider landed on your head!" Toshiyan shouted.

"Okay, sheesh, you ask a guy a question about what he's afraid of and you might as well ask if he likes math class." she said.

"Well, the only reason he denied it is because he really is afraid of spiders." Leafa added.

"I am NOT!" Toshiyan replied.

"Told you." Leafa continued.

They fought the spiderlings until finally they reached the boss gate. There stood a large, stone door that led to the boss room. They decided to take a break and decide how to plan the boss fight.

"Alright, so here's what I think, Klein, Liz and I will start off as tanks." Kirito started. "Asuna and Leafa will be ready to switch in and fight when we need them to. They will stay back and heal us when we need it. Sinon will stay back and help to take care of the spiderlings, and laying on the occasional shot on the boss." Kirito then turned to face Toshiyan. "Toshiyan, you aren't a tank, but I think it will be best if you hit it from behind and help anyway you can."

"Yeah, it'll be just like old times." Klein added. _If it were just like old times, then we would be in a whole lot of trouble._

"Yeah, that sounds like it will be the best plan." Toshiyan agreed. When everyone was healed up and was good to go, the party opened the tall stone doors. They walked in, it was dark at first. When they had entered the room fully, blue torches illuminated the tall, cylindrical dungeon. The entire area was covered in webs, except for the ground.

"Where's the boss?" Klein said. Toshiyan had an idea, but he was afraid to look. He reluctantly looked upward and still saw nothing. He scanned the entire dungeon and still couldn't find anything. Then with a jolt, the ground moved, and from below came a giant, black spider. Its icon confirmed that it was the Spider Lord Nemron. It let out a terrifying shriek and its health bars appeared. It clambered to the roof of the room and fired web from its behind. The party was able to dodge the web attacks, and they were able to take cover behind some rocks.

"I can't get a clear shot!" Sinon exclaimed.

"How do we get up there?" Asuna asked. "We can't fly in a dungeon."

"You can't," Toshiyan replied, his wings extending. "But I can." That was true. Toshiyan knew that Imps can fly in darkness, and other races couldn't without the sunlight. He extended his wings and shot into the air. He pulled his daggers out and dodged to the side as the spider shot web slings at him. _Wow, it_ _'_ _s a good thing that I have my speed stat up, or_ _I_ _'d be in trouble._ He flew to the underside of the spider and was able to cut off web from underneath the spider's feet. _He can cling to the web, but_ _I_ _'ll make sure it has a hard time un-clinging to it._ His plan worked, the spider was forced downward by its lack of traction on its own web. Toshiyan was forced to land, because even though Imps can fly underground, they can only do it for a short time.

"Nice, now let's do this!" Klein shouted. However, just at that moment, the spider let out a long shriek and many more spiderlings appeared from the ceiling. "Oh come ON!" Klein exclaimed.

"Take out the legs!" Kirito ordered. Asuna and Liz spent their energy on helping Sinon taking out the spiderlings. Klein and Silica switched out, each trying to land a blow on the spider. But no matter how hard they hit the spider, its health didn't go down.

"It's like there is some kind of shield on its legs!" Toshiyan shouted. _If only I had my daggers, then I could get a real hit and still have time to figure out how to kill it._ Toshiyan shook off his wishful thinking and continued slashing. Silica then realized something and ran to Kirito.

"Kirito, I just realized something! I'm a beast tamer!" she said.

"No good, you can't tame a boss." he replied.

"That's not the point! The point is that I know how the spider's body is structured. It should have a weak side below it." she continued.

"Great, if we can get below it, then we can actually hurt it!" Kirito realized. "Toshiyan! Klein!" the two fighters tuned in to what Kirito was saying. "Get it from below!" Kirito ordered.

"How are we supposed to do that?" Klein asked.

"I have an idea, get everyone to attack the spider from behind." Liz added. As everyone ran to meet at the spider's rear, they realized that there was an even larger problem. The spider was shooting web uncontrollably and they couldn't get a good vantage point to hit it.

"Plan B, Toshiyan," Asuna turned to him while saying so. "use your cocoon spell on the spider." she said.

"I thought that only made them more powerful, if it did anything at all." Toshiyan replied.

"I wasn't saying to put it around the boss." she answered. Toshiyan immediately caught on and stood up to get a clear view.

" **Rex-Non-Al-** **De-** augh! **"** He was interrupted when a spidering fell in from above, forcing him to the ground. "Not again!" he shouted, doing his best to stop the teeth of the beast from taking a bite out of him. _I never liked spiders, never have, never will._ His thought was interrupted with another beam of light enveloped the spider and it fell off of him. Sinon put her bow down and Toshiyan regained himself and got back up. "Thanks." He said gratefully.

"Not a problem, now use your magic and I'll watch for more spiderlings from above." Sinon replied. Toshiyan nodded and stood back up.

" **Rex-Non-Al-Den-Net-Ere-Drill** " Magic words surrounded him as Toshiyan said them. The dark tendrils shot out of his hand and he aimed it at the spiders rear. It completely covered the opening and the spider's health dropped dramatically as it shrieked in pain.

"Great," Kirito said. "Now signal me when the spider is reeled up." Kirito ran away to another area and out of sight.

Sinon helped to take on the spiderlings, but his health was still pretty low from the last attack. _Now I just wish that I had some health potions._ As if on cue, Silica's pet made a crowing sound toward Toshiyan, and to his amazement, his health bar went up. He smiled and turned to the party members, helping him when he had done nothing in return. _Is this what it_ _'_ _s like to have real friends?_ He smiled as he focused on the spell, watching as the spider's health continued to drop. _I could get used to this._ "Now!"

On cue, Kirito revealed himself from his hiding place and charged to the weak underbelly of the spider. His two swords glowed with power. He timed his attacks right and he started to hack away at the spider's underbelly and the other party members joined in. With one final blast from Kirito, he used his sword skill to completely cut the spider in half. It's remaining health vanished and the spider and the few remaining spiderlings vanished.

Above them, large words appeared, congratulating them on their victory. The party members shouted in triumph and they tried to advance, but the computer forbade them to.

The computer read: **Floors 3** **3** **-39: Coming Soon**.

"Well that's a bummer." Liz said. "We can't go on."

"Go on where?" Toshiyan asked. He wasn't as ahead, so the alert didn't reach him.

"Floors 30 through 39." Silica answered. Toshiyan immediately perked up at the comment.

"You mean," he continued hesitantly. "No one has beaten floor 37?"

"Well, yeah. Why do you ask?" Klein asked.

"Oh, um, it's just that-"

"Why are we all still here, this is a time to celebrate." Asuna interrupted. "Seven people just beat the highest floor available." They crowd turned around and began to make their way to the exit. However, Toshiyan lingered for a bit.

 _If there is still a chance that the daggers are still out there, then I have to get them. When I get them, it'll be just like—_ He stopped, realizing that what he was asking for got him in all the trouble that he hoped to avoid the the rest of his life. "Before."

It had been almost 7 months since the death game had started.

Toshiyan wasn't terribly good, but he could make it out of a jam if he needed to. Despite his efforts, he simply couldn't become 'strong enough' for him to feel satisfied. He tried so hard, but each time he pushed himself, it resulted in his near death. He would always find a way out, but if one mistake was made, he wouldn't be alive. He cut his chances way too close for comfort. He knew how to become stronger, but-

The door flew open. "Hey Toshiyan, I'm back!"

"Hey Lyn." Toshiyan replied.

"So, how's your day been going?" Lyn said cheerfully.

"Okay I suppose, well, considering that we're in a death game." Toshiyan said sarcastically.

"Well you don't have to be a sourpuss about it. If you are in a bad spot, then find what you can and be grateful for it. If you don't, then you'll never be happy." Lyn chastised.

"How can you be optimistic in a game like this, if you are trying to fight for your life, it's very hard for you to be-"

"And I do it anyway!" Lyn cut her brother off with pride. "Besides, when you get to be as good as I am, then-"

"IF!" Toshiyan corrected. Lyn rolled her eyes.

"See, IF you go around with that attitude, then you'll never be as good as me." she replied.

"You found a way to get into the Knights of the Blood Oath, one of THE best guilds in Aincrad, and you say that I can be that good?" Toshiyan replied doubtfully.

"YES, but you know what I think?" Lyn said sitting next to her brother. "I think someone has the grouchy bugs." she replied with a smile on her face. When her brother didn't respond with even a smile, her expression darkened. "Alright, what is it."

"What's what?" Toshiyan replied.

"You have one of those faces that say you're worried about something. What is it?" she asked. Toshiyan didn't answer. "Come on, you can tell me anything." she said. Toshiyan tried to bat away some tears but, some still appeared anyway.

"I want to go home." he said tearfully. "I don't want to be here anymore, I just want to go home." He rested his head on his sister's shoulder and she lifted Toshiyan's head up to face her's.

"Alright you listen to me." Lyn said sternly. "This game will be beaten, and you and I will get out of here hand in hand. We will look back on this and say: 'Well why were we worried?' and then you'll say something serious like 'because our lives were on the line.' Or something like that. Then, I'll retort with something like-"

"I just feel, I don't know, useless! You put your life on the line every day, and I can't help you. This stinks! I just wish that I could help." Toshiyan said frustratedly. Lyn sat in thought, and then her face lit up.

"Come with me." she said.

"Huh?" Toshiyan asked.

"Come with me to the front lines. I can't think of any better way for you to get more powerful then to have you fight there." Lyn answered.

"No, I couldn't." Toshiyan said.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm no good. I would just get in the way, and I don't know how much of a hit I can take from the boss. I would just mess everything up."

"That's not true!" Lyn exclaimed. "Any help is appreciated. If every person in SAO was to deal hits on these bosses, then the game would be cleared by the end of the year."

Toshiyan thought about the offer. "Are you sure that I wouldn't be a burden at the front lines?"

"Absolutely, and don't worry about me. I'll be fine, my stats are up enough to the point where I am not worried."

"I know, and that's what worries me."

Lyn stood up. "When did you start sounding like mom?"

Toshiyan reddened at the comment. "I do not sound like mom!" he replied defensively. Lyn giggled at the comment, then she put a reassuring hand on Toshiyan's shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'll always have your back. You're my baby brother of course, I could never leave you in the dust."

"HEY!"

"I'll work with you until you're just as good as I am. Then, we will be the best players in the game. People will look and say 'Look, Billy, there goes the Toshimaru and Lyn, the conquerors of SAO.'" Lyn said hopefully.

"You really think so?"

"Absolutely, but I think that you need to work on your heroic approach."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Toshiyan retorted.

"It means that we will work on your technique, besides, if you are good enough, then it's a great lady magnet."

"Hey, I'm already amazing with the ladies, and besides, I may not have a rapier, but I sure do have a rapier of wit." Toshiyan said humorously.

"Don't ever do that again, please?" Lyn asked.

"Okay." Toshiyan answered.

Toshi lay down on his bed the night of the boss fight, ideas running through his head. He knew that the daggers held extraordinary power. But, he also knew that they could be used for darker purposes. _Well, I can't exactly kill anyone with them, and I don't see a reason why I_ _couldn't_ _use them_ _here_ _._ Another idea went through his head. _What if someone else want's them? Would I let them have them? Should I fight for them? I just don't know._

Then, something else came to mind. _What if, one of the party members tried to take-_ He shook the idea off immediately, knowing the blunder in this thoughts. _I should stop acting like I care, once I lose the value from the other party members, then they'll leave me in the dust._ Toshiyan knew couldn't let that happen, and yet, he had the sneaking suspicion that it would.

If that was the case, he had to get the daggers. He could not under any circumstances pass them up. _I have to get those daggers, or else I lose the only chance of friends I have_. _I have to strong enough,_ Toshimaru thought as his eyes drooped. _I have to be._

There was going to be a party that followed the boss fight, to congratulate themselves on their good work. Like all the other members, Toshimaru was invited. Asuna said that the restaurant was in an alley near main street. Toshimaru followed the instructions exactly, and he ended up at a restaurant called _The Dicey Cafe_. He arrived early, but he stood outside, wondering if this was the right place or not. _I followed the instructions exactly, Asuna said that this is the place. Wait, what if there is another restaurant called the Dicey Cafe? Did I mess up? May be I should just-  
_

"Toshiyan, glad you could make it." Said an unfamiliar voice. Toshimaru turned to see Kirito, walking alongside someone he didn't recognize. They looked similar, but Kirito was taller and he was instantly recognizable. However, this other person didn't look like any other of the party members. _Who's that?_ He wondered.

"Hi Toshiyan," Kirito said kindly. "This is my sister, Sugu."

"Nice to meet you." she said. "I played as Leafa in the game."

"Right," Toshimaru said, finally putting the pieces together. "You mentioned you had a sister once, but I thought you said she didn't like games?"

"You know, that's exactly what I thought too, until I found out about ALO; then the truth came out."

"Sorry, I never really put two and two together, this is the right place right?" Toshimaru asked hopefully.

"Yeah this is it. Come inside." Kirito said as he walked through the door.

"Alright, thanks." Toshimaru replied. The inside of this cafe looked as if it could also be a bar. It looked a little old fashioned, but it was well kept. He could understand how people could like it here. "So, this is the hangout in real life."

"Yeah," Kirito said. "Hey, Agil! You here?" This was answered by a large man walking behind the bar table.

"Hey there Kazuto, you here for the party?" Agil asked.

"Sure are. You remember Toshiyan right?" Kazuto replied.

"Wait, your name is Kazuto?" Toshimaru asked, realizing that he actually had another name that wasn't a screen name.

"Yeah, my real name is Kazuto Kirigaya."

"Oh, well if that's the case," Toshiyan continued. "My name is Toshimaru Yanada, but most people just call me Toshi."

"Hold on a moment," Agil chimed in. "You're THE Toshiyan? As in, the Electric Assassin Toshiyan?"

"Well, I can't think of any other Toshiyans. Nice to re-meet you Agil." Toshi replied.

"Nice to re-meet you to. Wow, you look older, when you were in the game, you were just a small fry." Agil said.

"Hey!" Toshi retorted.

"You three should start a Q&A panel." Sugu interjected. "But, Toshi, I didn't know you were in SAO."

"Oh yeah, this kid wasn't just in SAO, he was one of the elites. He fought on the front lines and his speed and skill in battle was extraordinary." Agil answered. "He was called the Electric assassin because of his lightning fast battle style, and for his amazing daggers' technique."

"Daggers?" Sugu said curiously. "I saw that you had those when you were fighting. I didn't ask, but personally I don't like them, I was curious though."

"I guess old habits die hard." Toshi replied. "But I only was so good because of my weapons. If you think about it, they were a little overpowered."

"Don't sell yourself short," Kirito added. "Sure, they were powerful, but only one with skill as great as yours could have used them in such a way that gave you your title."

"Thanks, but-" Toshi was interrupted when both Asuna and Liz entered the cafe. Asuna had looked as she usually did. Liz didn't look that different from her avatar, besides her dark brown hair, she looked just like her. They walked over to join Toshi and the others.

"Wow," Liz said, scanning Toshi as she thought. "This is what you look like in real life. I didn't see you in SAO, but I didn't think you were so young."

"I was 16 when you would have seen me. I have grown a lot since then." Toshiyan said. Klein was next to walk in the door and Silica followed. They then joined the group and Agil went to get the food.

"Is everyone here?" Kirito asked.

"No, were still missing Shino." Liz answered. _Who's Shino?_

"Well, let's have everything set up when she gets here." Kirito replied. As they were setting up, Toshi did a head count. He figured out that indeed someone was missing. _Of course! Shino must be Sinon. That makes sense, their names are similar. I wonder what she's like?_ When they were almost done setting up, Sinon, or Shino, came through the door.

"Sorry," she said quickly. "The traffic was bad, so it took a little longer to get here than I thought."

"That's alright." Silica replied. "We decided to set up, and it was perfect timing too."

Shino didn't look like her avatar that much. She had black hair that was longer than her avatar's, and she wore it to her sides. She also had glasses that magnified her brown eyes. _Wow, I didn't expect that._ Shino walked toward Toshi smiled.

"You must be Toshi, I'm Shino, I was Sinon in the game.

"Nice to meet you, sorry about the spider thing that happened. I looked it up and you were right."

"That's alright, I didn't exactly put my best foot forward during that either." she replied.

"Well, let's do this, how about we try this again." Toshi said. "Hi, I'm Toshimaru Yanada, but most people call me Toshi."

"Alright then, I'm Shino Asada. Nice to meet you." she replied. They both took a seat and began to eat along with everyone else.

"So, Toshi, what's school like?" Klein asked.

"Well, I'm in an interesting situation." Toshi started to say. "I am saving up right now to go to college, I did concurrent enrollment and earned an associate's degree. That gave me time to try and live on my own and save for college."

"That's a good idea, maybe I'll try that." Silica said.

"Concurrent enrollment is hard, but it was worth it. I would try it, it would only benefit you anyway." Toshi said.

"Speaking of school, I've wondered why I never saw you at our school. Did you go somewhere else?" Asuna asked.

"Well, yes I did. My parents thought that I should go to another school. I went to another academy not too far away."

"Well, that's alright." Kirito said. "And we're even more glad to have you as a friend now." This puzzled Toshi, he didn't think that after all he had done, anyone would want him to be their friend.

"Wait, we're friends now?" Toshi asked. "Not that I'm complaining."

"Yeah, you're one of us now." Klein replied.

After that, the party went on and Toshi learned a lot about his fellow party members. They spent the evening laughing, and telling of their accomplishments. Following that, Kazuto made a toast.

"Here's to floor 32, and to our new party member!"

 _I think that may be I was a bit harsh on them. May be, I was being harsh on myself. I genuinely believe that I should give this a chance. I think that the best idea is to be their friend. I will give them a chance._

 _And_ _I_ _'ll give myself a chance._

* * *

 **Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I really like this story. I will be trying to make this as good as it deserves to be. Thanks to all who are currently reading this story,** **I'll** **be sure to update soon.**

 **Zippy**


	5. Chapter 4

**I am having a blast making these chapters. Will try to update soon. This is a bit of a smaller chapter, but it is very important for later events.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Chapter 4

Toshi's life was a lot better with his friends. They were kind and nice to one another, though it was Asuna that took most of the liberty in inviting Toshi to events. Probably because she was the only one with his Email. However, one day, Toshi was going to the Dicey Cafe. He had left his jacket there and it was in the middle of November, and he was kind of missing it. He remembered taking it to the Cafe and decided to check there first. He pushed open the doors and saw Agil working on the tables, but that wasn't all, Kazuto was working on a computer and a camera.

"Hey Agil." Toshi said.

Agil peered up from his work and smiled. "Hey there Toshi, what can do for you?"

"Well, I think I left my jacket here, do you have a lost and found?"

"Yeah," Agil answered. "It's behind the counter." Toshi went behind the counter and began to sort through the various things in the bin. His looking however, was interrupted by a voice that didn't belong to either Kazuto nor Agil. It was a child's voice, but there was no child in the room.

"Daddy, who's that?"

 _Am I hearing the voices in my head again?_ Toshi thought. Kazuto smiled, looking at a camera.

"Actually, Yui, that's our new friend. His name is Toshi." Kazuto answered. Toshi was confused, and he walked over to see what was going on. He paused and looked at Kazuto's computer, but it was full of strange symbols and words.

"Did you write a program in Elvish?" Toshi asked.

"No, this isn't a program, it's the controls for the camera's. Technically, Yui is in charge of doing that sort of thing, but I had to come and do some alterations."

"Oh, so I'm not hearing voices in my head, good to know." Toshi said relieved. "But, who's Yui?"

"Well, thats going to be hard for me to explain, I best leave that to Yui."

"Okay, daddy." Yui agreed. "I'm a program, from SAO. I was a psychology program to help the players in SAO. I met both mommy and daddy in there."

"Kazuto, you never told me about Yui." Toshi replied.

"Well, I decided against it, and she wasn't around for very long. And I don't think you were going to be that interested. Besides, when that happened, you, um, had a lot more on you plate to deal with."

 _Finally, he does something useful and keeps his mouth shut about what happened._

"You were in SAO?" Yui interjected.

"Yeah, why?" Toshi asked nervously.

"Scanning." The program said, humming with information. When it was completed, it displayed out Toshi's character information from SAO. "Identification: Toshiyan." Yui started. "Maximum level: 67. Weapons last equipped: The electric dragon daggers."

 _Wait, hold on._

"Sorry, I hate to interrupt, but what was my guild most time in?" Toshi asked. Yui thought for a minute, relaying her information.

"The guild of most importance: The Knights of the Blood Oath." Yui confirmed. Toshi sighed with relief.

"Alright, I just wanted to check. Thank you Yui." Then, an idea popped into his head. "Yui, do you have every single player's information on your database?"

"Yes, my database contains the information of every single player, all 10,000 of them." Yui confirmed.

Toshi turned to Kazuto. "Kazuto, a while back, I got a letter in the mail. It was from the SAO survival school, they said they wanted me to come to their school, but they also wanted me to bring in any of the kids that didn't register on their scans."

"Really?!" Kazuto replied. "Yeah, some didn't come off the scan. There was a news report about this. They don't know why so many didn't come off, but they know that not 10,000 people didn't go to the school."

"But with Yui, you could not only help the school, you could help everyone else!"

"I don't want to tell anyone about Yui." Kazuto continued.

Toshi was stunned. "But, why not?"

"I don't want her to be shown to the world and then copied and replaced." _I can't believe this guy! He is so self-righteous and he doesn't even care about how his actions will affect others._ _Wait!_

"Compromise," Toshi said. "Yui tells me the names and identities of the missing people, I go tell the school, the school doesn't know Yui exists, everybody wins." Kazuto thought about the idea, and then he nodded.

"Alright, I want the people found just as much as I do." Kazuto agreed.

"Then lets do it."

* * *

 _Still 7 months into SAO..._

Toshiyan and Lyn walked to the large party of guild members that gathered in front of the dungeon's entrance. After their previous conversation, Lyn convinced Toshiyan to go to the boss battle to gain experience. If the boss was defeated, Lyn knew that Toshiyan would gain several levels. The floor boss battle, was on floor 37.

"Lyn, are you sure that we'll be alright, I mean, sure there are a lot of guys here, but is this safe?"

"To be honest, nothing in SAO is safe unless it is handled correctly. Luckily for you, not only do you have the best big sister to help you, but you have one of the best guilds helping to."

"Alright," Toshiyan said bravely, but twinge of fear still tinted his voice. "I'll do my best."

"Great, that's the spirit." Lyn replied enthusiastically. "Let me introduce you to some of the best fighters I know." The siblings joined the large assembly of fighters. Lyn pointed out some of the fighters, then walked over to one with her back turned. "Hey there, Asuna."

The young woman that Lyn was talking to turned around and smiled. "Hello Lyn, how are you?"

"I'm doing well, thanks." Lyn replied, then gestured toward Toshiyan. "This is my little brother Toshiyan. He is going to the boss fight with us."

"Great, we could use all the help we can get. Pleased to meet you Toshiyan."

"Uh, pleased to meet you to." Toshiyan replied.

"Great, now that the introductions are done, then lets get started." Lyn said.

"Alright, then i'll get us started." Asuna said confidently. When the crowd finished, Asuna had no trouble quieting them down. "Aright, thanks for coming. I know that the dungeons are difficult things to clear, but with every step we take, the closer we get to home! So lets clear this dungeon!" Asuna exclaimed, the crowd shouting in agreement.

When Asuna had finished her speech, she turned the time over to another member of the Knights of the Blood Oath. "Alright, so in case you didn't get the memo, the boss in this dungeon is the Electric Dragon of Voldoon. He does not have an army on his heel, but be on guard. I personally think that if we work together, then we can beat this boss without any casualties. So lets do it!" The man said, pushing open the doors.

Toshiyan followed close behind the group, seeing if he could spot anything suspicious. He had a pretty decent awareness skill, but there is always that one monster that could jump out at any moment.

He did the best he could, no one complained about his presence. He didn't hurt the group in any way, and he leveled up 3 times, and he wasn't even in the boss room yet. Another thing, more like a person, was the girl that he met in Lyn's guild first, Asuna. She was strong, she had a look of determination pasted on her face. She helped any individual in need, and she didn't mind. She-

"Toshi, you can stop drooling now." Lyn interrupted.

Toshiyan snapped out of his thoughts. "What!" He replied defensively. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I saw you checking out Asuna, you like her don't you." Lyn retorted.

"No! I mean, sure she-"

"Then would it interest you to know that she has a boyfriend?" Lyn asked.

This statement shocked Toshiyan, but at the same time, he should have seen it coming. "Really?"

"Yeah," Lyn confirmed. "I have only seen him once, you might have heard of him. He is named Kirito, but most people know him as the Black Swordsman."

Toshiyan vaguely recognized the name, he had heard some people talking about a Black Swordsman Kirito. "I think i've heard of him, does he only use one sword and no shield?"

Lyn smiled. "That's the one, i've seen them together, they look happy." Lyn shrugged. "Who knows? I've seen stranger things happen. Although, I didn't see my baby brother fall for Lightning Flash coming." Toshiyan responded to this by punching his sister in the arm. "Alright, alright, i'm sorry." Lyn apologized, rubbing the area where Toshiyan punched him.

"You are forgiven." Toshiyan replied.

The group had finally stopped in front of the boss's door for a rest point. As the group regained themselves, Asuna went around talking to everyone. She had eventually made her way to Toshiyan and Lyn, as they ate their food.

"Lyn, you are never allowed to make our food for a boss fight ever again! Or at all for that matter." Toshiyan complained, staring at the sandwich Lyn had made for him.

"If you stopped complaining, then you would find out that it isn't half-bad."

"I don't know Lyn," Asuna interjected. "Remember that sandwich you made me back when you first joined?"

"Uh, yeah, you said you loved it. My cooking skill wasn't that good back then, but you ate every bite. Why?"

"Well, actually,"

Lyn's expression changed. "Wait, you LIED to me! I legitly thought that you liked it!"

"Well, I am glad there is something that we can agree on." Toshiyan retorted.

"Well, in your defense, your cooking skill wasn't that high." Asuna continued.

Lyn sighed. "Well, that's the last time I make you a sandwich." She then turned to her brother. "That goes for you to!"

Toshiyan frowned. "Why am I brought into this? Asuna is the one that mocked your sandwich."

"Well you started it!" Lyn continued. Their argument was interrupted when they both realized that Asuna was giggling.

"Stop laughing at us!" The siblings replied.

"Sorry," Asuna said, still giggling to herself. "I am just bewildered by your argument over a silly thing."

"I can't believe I was lied to, deceived, ME!" Lyn ranted.

"Lyn, at least it isn't the worst thing i've ever tasted."

Lyn perked up. "It isn't"

"Well, yeah, remember when mom cooked up that tuna noodle casserole for the family?"

Lyn smirked. "Yeah, that was bad."

"At least this was better than that." Toshiyan replied hopefully.

"Wow," Lyn said. "I fell relieved and much more annoyed at the same time."

"There you go," Toshiyan said. "Now you have no reason to pummel me."

Lyn turned to her brother. "I wouldn't say that just yet." However, their conversation was interrupted by a foreman, dressed in white and red.

"Asuna, everyone is ready for the boss fight, and they are good to go." The foreman said sternly.

Asuna's more serious nature reappeared as she stood up. "Excellent," She replied to the foreman. She turned to the siblings. "Are you two ready?"

"Yeah," Lyn said as she stood up.

"Yeah, alright." Toshiyan answered. The entire party assembled themselves in front of the boss's doors. There was a silence for a while, until Asuna came to the front.

"Alright everyone, we can do this, is everyone ready?" Asuna asked. The crowd shouted a loud, defiant YES. "Then lets do this!" Asuna shouted as she pushed open the doors to the most important boss fight of Toshiyan's life.

* * *

Toshi waited patiently inside of the principal's office of the SAO Survivor school. He had turned in a list of names of the administrator, and he was in the other room running them through the computer. Toshi, Kazuto, and Yui had all helped to find list of names that were not on the database of SAO players. Then for the moment of truth, he was called into the room with the principal. Toshiyan walked into the room where the research was done and the principal gestured for him to take a seat.

"Thank you for these list of names, your help was invaluable, and as to your request, we will stop sending you letters of our recommendation. _It's about time you stopped sending me letters!_

"No problem, I am glad that I was able to help."

"Yes, however, we did some research on the list of names you gave us, and we looked them up."

"And?" Toshi replied curiously.

The administrator sighed. "Toshi, all of the people on that list were are either in prison or not actually people."

"What do you mean, not actually people?"

"I am saying that they don't exist." The principal continued. "There are no records of them, no birth certificates, no ties to others from what we can see. They don't exist."

Toshi was trying to piece together the mystery, but nothing came to mind.

"Thank you for your help, you have relieved a lot of our burden of not knowing the location of some people."

After the meeting, Toshiyan lay in bed that night, still wondering about how the people could hide their identities. He knew that they existed, he had even seen them before. That was when he-.

 _NO!_ He thought to himself as he pushed the thoughts away. _I don't want to remember that time, I was too trusting and I wanted to believe that I was doing the right thing. But, that's what I deserve for trusting them. Now my sister is dead and I am left a terrible person._

 _Why is it so hard to run from a life that I don't want, but I deserve. It's my fault Lyn is dead, it should have been me._

 _It should have been me._ Those were his last thoughts as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 **Sorry about how short of a chapter this was, and for how long it took to write it. The next chapter is when you get a good look on the daggers, I intend for it to be a rather long chapter. Until then….**

 **Zippy**


	6. Chapter 5

**Alright, this should be fun, and sorry for how long this took. I blame school. Anyway, I switched my word processing program from pages to google docs (I don't own either one of those), so now I'll be able to write in this much more frequently. So happy reading everyone!**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Then it happened.

Floors 33-39 were released to the public. Toshi had to wait until floor 36 was beaten, all the while trying to increase his level. He knew that he had to get those daggers, but he also knew that he wouldn't be able to beat the boss on his own. _Should I message them somehow? Or should I wait for them to get back to me?_ He sat down in front of the computer in debate, but when he was about to open his email, he noticed another message sitting unopened his inbox. It was Asuna with the subject of floor 37. Toshi opened the email.

 **Alright everyone, I know we haven't gotten together in a while, but I believe that now is a good time. I propose that (as soon as the time comes) we go after floor 37. The rundown of the boss goes as follows:**

 **Name: The Electric Dragon of Voldoon**

 **I am familiar with this boss as I was one of the people fighting against it during SAO. I am relatively sure that we can do this. The first time we beat it surprised me because we had only one casualty, and that was for a different reason. I also know that Toshi has a great deal of knowledge about the dragon too, so that will be very helpful.**

 **This dragon does not have very many minions, but where it lacks support, it makes up for in sheer power. I can give more information on it later, but I think that it would be awesome if we could do it. Please let me know if you can come.**

 **Asuna**

 _Of course! Asuna was there the first time, that means that she would know about the daggers. She set this up perfectly so that I could get the daggers again._ Toshi pondered about her reasoning of that choice. _Why would she do that for me? Wait! Is it because she want's the daggers? Does someone else want the daggers?_ Toshiyan opened up a draft of an email. He rapidly typed as his thoughts continued to process the act of kindness that Asuna had just done. _Those other options seem a little far out for it it be like that. She wouldn't do that._ He finished the email confirming his appearance at the boss fight.

 _I'll be there, and who knows? Now, i'll find out if my supposed friends really are using me to find out the weakness on the dragon. And if they are, then how will they react if and when I get the daggers?_

It didn't take long, but soon floor 33 was beaten, followed by floors 34 and 35. Then, to Toshi's excitement, floor 36 was beaten, and Toshiyan was ready. They decided to meet in Liz's blacksmith shop. Toshiyan walked into Liz's shop. Klein was there along with Liz. He was about to take a seat, until Liz stepped into the way, holding something in her hand. As it turns out, it was some things she was holding in her hand.

"Heya Toshiyan." Liz said enthusiastically. "I made a surprise for you."

"Really?" Toshiyan started. "What is it?" _Don't tell me, let me guess._

"I finally made you your new daggers!" Liz said excitedly pulling them out from the sheath inside her hand. He examined the item, seeing that the daggers did much more damage than his old ones. On top of that, the durability was much better. Also, it looked like Liz put a lot of time and energy into them. He smiled as he pulled out the daggers and looked at them they felt just like the dragon daggers.

"Thanks, they're great." Toshiyan replied as he sheathed the daggers and equipped them.

"See," Liz said. "and you thought that those puny sticks you called daggers before were great. Now, all of my buddies are well equipped and ready for the boss." _You know, I appreciate the gesture, but…_

Kirito walked in at that moment with Asuna and that completed the group. "Glad you two could make it." Liz said, turning her attention away from Toshiyan.

"Sorry, we were held up. Is everyone here?" Asuna asked.

"Almost," Sinon said. Toshiyan turned to face her. _Wait, how long has she been sitting there?_ "Silica and Leafa aren't here yet."

"Are they coming?" Klein asked.

"Sugu can't, she's got some school work to finish. But as far as I know, Silica should still be coming."

"Yeah, she didn't say anything about her changing her mind." Asuna answered.

"Alright, sit tight everyone, I'll see if I can message her." Kirito said as he swiped his menu on.

 _Okay._ Toshiyan unknowingly took a seat nearby Sinon and kept examining his new daggers. They were of Leprechaun origin, no surprise there, but he really wished they were of dragon origin. That way the durability would be better. _What if I-_

"Do you want some advice?" Sinon asked, snapping Toshiyan out of his thought.

"Wait, what?" Toshiyan replied.

"You don't like the daggers Liz gave you, do you?"

"No, I mean, yes, I mean, well-"

"You could always just ask her to merge them with another weapon."

"Wait, I can do that?"

"Any blacksmith can do that, you can just ask."

"Um, thanks." Toshiyan said.

"Glad to help." Sinon replied.

As if on cue, Silica rushed into the room. "I am so sorry everyone, I swear there is a very good explanation, and-."

"Woah, Silica, slow down, there is no fire in here." Toshiyan interjected.

"Yeah," Klein continued. "I mean, the closest thing in here to hot is me." This was responded with everyone just staring at Klein.

"You would like to think that, but in all seriousness, you're the only thing in here keeping this room cool." Liz countered. This put the room in laughter and it was all laughed off, except Klein.

"Hey, it wasn't that funny." Klein replied defensively.

"Alright," Asuna said taking charge. It almost reminded Toshiyan of the way she led all the boss fights back in SAO. She had this kind of aura about her that just made everyone feel welcome. "Thanks for coming, I always love it when we go and do fights. As you all know, we are facing the Electric Dragon of Voldoon, and there is not much of an army to fight, but don't take the boss lightly. Other than that, we should be fine. If you have any questions, then you should ask me, or Toshiyan." Toshiyan was caught off guard by the sudden attention.

"Uh, yeah, lets do it." Toshiyan said standing up, followed by everyone else, and each of them left the shop, equally excited for the upcoming battle.

It wasn't long before they all arrived at the boss lair. As they walked, it all came back to Toshiyan. He could remember waiting outside the door with Lyn, and seeing her so confident. _She truly believed that we would get out of there together, but I sure screwed that up._ Asuna talked a little more about the dungeon before they entered, but he wasn't listening. Toshiyan was too focused on all that had happened. _It was all my fault, no, it was Kirito's fault. If he hadn't run away, then Lyn would still be alive. I can never forgive him for what he has done._

"Alright, is everyone ready?" Asuna asked the group. This snapped Toshiyan out of his daze, and nodded his in concurrence. "Then lets go." Asuna said, and with that, she turned around and opened the doors.

They all funneled inside and walked down the long, dark passage way. It was all in silence, up until Toshiyan felt a tug on his arm.

"Hey, Toshiyan?"

Toshiyan recognized the voice as Silica's "Yeah, whats up?"

"What is the dragon like?" she asked.

Toshiyan thought about this for a minute. "Well, I won't lie to you, he is kinda scary."

"He is?"

"Yeah, he has this really large snout and has large and shiny teeth."

"What?!" Silica was nervous now, and when she had looked away, Toshiyan quickly motioned for Klein to come over.

"Yeah, and thats not even the worse part. You see, you won't hear him until he's right behind you and you can only know its too late when he unleashes his large and mighty-"

Toshiyan stopped as Klein came in on cue with a roar that made Silica jump up onto a nearby rock screaming. Both Klein and Toshiyan burst out laughing and high fived each other. Silica glared at the both of them.

"That wasn't funny." she huffed as she climbed down.

"It kind of was, just a little bit." Klein said.

"Well this is how much I like it!" She retorted. With that, she then slammed her foot onto Toshiyan boot. This was unfortunate, because Silica was wearing a metal lining on her boots and Toshiyan was wearing a thin material designed to increase his speed. After impact, Toshiyan doubled over, clutching his feet in pain, as Silica skipped off as if nothing had happened.

After that, they approached a small bridge connecting their current tunnel with that of their next destination.

"Is it safe?" Klein asked.

"I think so." Asuna replied. "I'll lead the way just in case."

She took a few cautious steps forward, with the rest of the party following. When they were about halfway across the bridge, Toshiyan surveyed the area. He looked around, but he didn't see any monsters, and he didn't remember anything being trapped. Toshiyan took a few hesitant steps following the group. Then across from the other side of the group, a large shadow appeared. Fearing the worst, the group readied their weapons.

Luckily, it was just a small lizard that was wandering down the tunnel. _Wow, that's new._ The group relaxed and the lizard inched its way forward.

"Aww," Silica said. "Its soooooooo cute!" She stepped next to it and started to pet it.

"Hey, get away from that!" Kirito warned.

Suddenly, Toshiyan saw what he was talking about. It wasn't a passive background monster, because it had an HP bar. But the strangest part was that monster didn't have a name.

Silica rolled her eyes. "Look at that," She said gesturing to the small lizard. "What harm could that cute little-"

She was cut off when the very lizard she was gesturing to then opened its jaws and bit Silica fingers.

"OWWWWWW! GET THIS THING OFF OF ME!" Silica yelled.

She didn't wait for anyone to comply, she pulled out her daggers and cut off the head of the lizard. The body then went limp and fell to the ground, as the head disappeared into crystals. Silica frowned as she looked at the red marks on her hand.

"It seems that it wasn't as adorable as you thought." Liz said.

"That. Really. Hurt." Silica replied, now clutching her fingers.

But, the previously limp corpse twitched and stood upright. The group watched as the previously dead lizard was then alive again, and it seemed to glare at the party.

"C-Can a monster do that?" Silica asked.

"Not that I was aware of." Kirito answered.

The lizard let out a large croak that echoed down the cave. At first, there was nothing, then there was a large rumbling as tons of small lizards appeared on both sides of the bridge. Klein took a slash at one of the lizards, but almost as soon the blow landed, the lizard regenerated. Toshiyan was finally able to see what the monster was, but only when all of the lizards were in a group.

 _The Scaly Horde, I don't remember this in SAO._ Toshiyan was looking for possible weaknesses, but there were just too many of them. He could help fly his teammates, but not long enough and no one else could help him.

"This is new," Toshiyan said. "Asuna, have any ideas?"

"Well, I do have one." Asuna replied. "But-"

She was interrupted by Klein yelling a battle cry as he charged at the monsters. He ferociously slashed at the lizards. Each one falling down on the floor. It wasn't long until most of the monsters were in pieces on the ground, and Klein was panting.

"There," he said in between breathes. "That should do it."

"Yeah, thats all good." Sinon said. "But shouldn't they all break into shards now?"

The group looked back on the dismembered parts of the many lizards Klein had created. But still they were not disappearing. Then there was a rustling and the entire party watched as all of Klein's previous carnage was then revived.

"Aw, COME ON!" Klein whined.

The Lizards then charged at the party and they were able to keep them at bay, but they were unable to kill them.

"These scaly menaces just wont die." Sinon said calmly as she loaded her bow and fired in a clean shot toward the large horde.

 _Its not so much their health as it is their regeneration._ "How do we kill these things?" Toshiyan yelled, slicing at another bunch of lizards. He turned to Asuna, who just finished freezing a bunch of them. "What should we do?" Toshiyan said.

"I don't think that my last idea would be that helpful." She replied. Toshiyan was trying to think about how to kill them. _Why is this harder than the freaking boss!_

Then he saw something.

Klein had either intentionally or accidentally kicked off some lizards. Toshiyan looked down under the bridge to see the unfortunate lizards break into crystals and fly off. Kirito saw it to and they both came to a mutual understanding. Splitting up, they immediately began to kick off the lizards down into the large abyss.

"What are you two doing?" Sinon inquired.

"They won't regenerate if we kick them down." Toshiyan answered.

"Everyone! Kick the lizards off the bridge!" Kirito ordered. The group set to work, finding any way they could to remove the lizards. Sinon fired arrows that turned into nets, and Klein pushed the trapped monsters off. Even Pina picked up a few lizards and dropped them into the crevice. Soon, there were no lizards left to fight.

"Well," Klein said panting. "That was fun."

"That was a great idea Kirito." Asuna commented to Kirito.

Kirito smiled at the compliment. "Hey, I would never have figured it out if Toshi hadn't spotted it first." He replied.

Toshiyan perked up at the mention of his name. Asuna turned to face Toshiyan to. "Great job to both of you." She said cheerfully.

"Well," Klein interjected. "I was the one who started the idea by kicking the lizards off, so technically-"

Klein stopped when Liz punched him in the arm. "Klein, don't be an idiot."

"Hey," He replied plainly putting his arms in the air for effect. "I'm just saying that-" He stopped as the other members just simply walked away.

"OH COME ON!" Klein exclaimed.

Not long after the bridge, the group finally came across two very large doors with complex markings. Kirito then began addressing the group.

"Alright everyone, now is the time. I know that we can beat this boss if we all work together, we can win just like we did on floor 29. Ready everyone?" He asked. Everyone replied with a nod. Kirito smiled at the group. "Then lets get started." With that he pushed the door open and the group marched inside.

It was an empty room, all the walls covered in crystals. The walls shimmered like disco balls on all sides. Each beam of light perfectly reflecting the light, making the cavern glow many colors.

The sight almost looked beautiful.

Then, Crystals began shooting off the walls, uniting in the middle like a magnetic force binding them all together. Each crystal adding on the next, making the form grow larger and larger. Distinguishable features began appearing. A main body, wings, and a snout came into view. Soon the Dragon came into view, letting out a huge roar.

Toshiyan smiled to himself. Reaching for his daggers, he readied himself for the upcoming battle. It all looked the same: The atmosphere, the looks, the dragon itself, everything.

 _It is exactly as it was before._

* * *

SAO boss battle at floor 37

The battle was in full swing. Swords clashing, the dragon roaring, crystals flashing. It wasn't a pretty picture in floor 37 of the castle Aincrad. Each swordsman was fighting for their lives, this was no exception for Toshiyan. He was bobbing and weaving attacks and trying his hardest, but it seemed like he was only getting in the way. His attacks were weak, and his skills were low, what was he thinking fighting in the front lines! He didn't belong here.

"Switch!" Lyn ordered. Toshiyan snapped out of his daze and launched at the dragon. He was slashing at the dragon when he turned to to see Asuna slicing at the dragon so quickly that he could hardly see her sword. He kept on slashing, but he just felt, out of place. He didn't deserve to be here.

The dragon let out another electric attack, leaving some teammates paralyzed. Toshiyan looked at the belly of the beast and had an idea. He had noticed that when the dragon fired electric bolts of lightning, its chest began to glow first. The glow originated from the chest of the monster, but he was the only one who saw it, because he wasn't that tall.

Right before he was about to make his move, the dragon swatted Toshiyan away, knocking him against the wall. Leaving his small sword where he once stood. Lyn tried frantically to get to her brother, but the dragon prevented that from happening. Toshiyan struggled to get to his feet, but when he reached for a healing crystal, there were none to be found. He gazed at his fallen sword, just to see it stepped on by the dragon. To his surprise it didn't break, but he knew that he had to get his sword.

"Toshi! Are you alright?" Lyn said worriedly handing her brother a health crystal.

"I have to get my sword!" Toshiyan replied quickly, rushing forward at the dragon.

"Is he crazy?" a teammate asked another. Toshiyan ignored the comment he overheard. His focus was too important. He rolled to avoid the dragon's claw attack. Grabbing his sword, Toshiyan then ran away from the monster. He examined the swords stats and panicked at what he saw.

0.1 durability points remained on his sword. Toshiyan didn't have any other weapons besides this! He had to hope it didn't break before it made contact! He would have to be fast. Toshiyan stood up quickly and rushed at the dragon.

"Toshiyan, what are you doing?" Asuna yelled.

"Just trust me!" Toshiyan replied. As if on cue, the dragon prepared for another electric attack. He charged at the dragon again, all was counting on this shot right here. If he missed, then that would be the end of it. The lightning would hit him, and his health points would go down to 0. Which is why he didn't count on missing.

The dragon's chest began to glow with energy, and it was preparing another attack. Toshiyan pulled his sword back and threw it with all his might. The flew wildly throughout the air, soaring right at the dragon. Toshiyan was putting too much at risk here; he knew that with his luck, the blade should have shot back and done nothing.

However, it didn't.

The small sword pierced right in the heart of the beast. The dragon let out a terrible roar as sparks flew everywhere. The light flashed and warriors covered their eyes. The dragon's health points were dropping rapidly. The dragon roared fiercely, thrashing at emptiness. When the dragon's HP dropped to 0, it broke into hundreds of shards.

The raid group stood in silence for a moment, all staring at the young boy who had literally, slayed his dragon. Then they group cheered, both at the fact that they had beaten the floor, and for the boy who had slain the boss. Toshiyan then had a small alert appear in front of him, informing him that he had won the last hit bonus for the boss fight. The alert showed that he had obtained a weapon from the boss drop.

They were called the electric dragon daggers. Two daggers that did moderate damage and each dagger had about 20 percent chance of paralysis. On top of that, because they were of dragon origin, the durability of the daggers would not weaken, unless against another dragon weapon or dragon class monster. Toshiyan gazed in awe at the amazing weapons. Lyn walked over to her brother, and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Congratulations bro! You got a boss drop, how is it."

"I think that all of my bad karma that I've had in this game has just turned around and has turned in my favor for once in my life."

* * *

Back in Alfheim however, things weren't so good.

Klein and Kirito were struggling to keep the attention of the dragon off of their fellow party members. Asuna was struggling to keep everyone healed, and Sinon could barely land a shot on the boss. The dragon had significantly improved since the last time Toshiyan and Asuna battled it. Now, it had a thick hide protecting it from most attacks. Only the tanks could dish mild amounts of damage, and the group was struggling.

Toshiyan did his best to analyze the situation, but he couldn't see any good options

"Toshiyan! Give me a lift!" Klein ordered.

"I can't fly forever, and Salamanders like you are too heavy for me to carry!" Toshiyan replied.

"Is that a fat joke?!"

Meanwhile, Silica rushed over to Kirito and ordered Pina to help heal him. As Kirito's health points went up slowly, he turned to face his friend.

"Thanks Silica." He responded.

"No problem." Silica answered. "How do we beat it?"

"I was hoping Toshiyan could answer that question for us." Kirito said. Toshiyan had just landed nearby Kirito and was fighting the dragon to no avail when he heard this.

 _Do I tell them? Should I risk my advantage for my friends? Do I trust them?_ The first instinct was to not trust them. He knew that trusting left him vulnerable. He didn't want to be mislead again. Then, he felt something else. Something that he hadn't felt in a long time. He felt the urge to trust them, to let his secret go. After a moment of thought, he made his choice.

"The dragon's weakness is to aim for it's chest when it's about to shoot it's lightning attack. However, I don't see how we can hurt it. With its hide as powerful as it is, I don't think that we can beat it."

"Don't worry, I have just the thing for this." Kirito confirmed. "Just let me handle this. See if you can get it to shoot lightning." Kirito then turned around and ran back to Asuna.

"Silica!" Toshiyan yelled. "Have Pina use bubbles to knock it upward."

Pina obeyed, even before Silica was able to order it to attack, but it still wasn't enough. Luckily, Sinon caught on and started showering the dragon with arrows. Even Klein helped a little bit. With some effort, the gang was able to drive the dragon upwards. When the dragon charged it's attack, Kirito was ready.

Kirito charged forward, not carrying his normal sword, but a golden one that Toshiyan was able to recognize instantly.

 _When did he get the sword Excalibur?!_ Kirito took one large slash, and it was just like it was in Aincrad. When the dragon finally died, congratulations icon appeared in the middle of the boss room. Toshiyan was waiting for the alert icon, but it never came. Instead, it came to Kirito.

 _I should have known. Kirito killed the boss, and I basically handed him the daggers on a silver platter._

"The Electric Dragon Daggers." Kirito said plainly. "A drop so rare that it can only be found in one boss fight and are likely the most powerful daggers of all of ALO." He then condensed the item into a small orb and casually swiped it to Toshiyan. Toshiyan opened the orb and looked at the weapon that Kirito just handed him.

 _Why? Why would you give me this? You had the most powerful daggers in all of ALO and you just gave them to me!_

"You're giving these?"

"Well, sure." Kirito replied. "You're better with daggers than I'll ever be."

Toshiyan then equipped his daggers and just stared at them. It seemed like an eternity since he had held them. He then put them in his dagger sheaths.

"Dang it," Liz whined. "I worked so hard on my daggers to give them to you and now you haul off and get different ones!"

"Well, You get an A+ for effort, Liz." Toshiyan replied.

 _They weren't using me at all! They wanted to give me the daggers, because they wanted to make me happy! Now, I will try my best to return the favor to all them._

And for the first time in a long time, Toshiyan felt at peace.

* * *

 **Well, I hope you liked that chapter. Guys, *I get on my knees* PLEASE leave a review. I need more than just the old formatting error reviews. They make me look bad. So PLEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAASSSSSSE! Thank you!**

 **Zippy**


	7. Chapter 6

**Well, here I am, and i'm back for good! (Hopefully) Anywho, I had an idea, what if I was to have Toshiyan go on a little adventure with all of Kirito's passy members. I know just how to start too….**

 **#TotallyNotZuko, because I don't own him either.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Toshiyan opened the door to Liz's shop. He peeked around, looking for any sign of anyone being there. When he inferred that she wasn't there, he was about to leave. However, Liz then opened the back door to her shop and stopped her friend.

"Heya Toshiyan." she said.

Toshiyan turned around. "Oh, great, you're here."

"Don't act so surprised, I do work here." Liz then went to her counter and beckoned her friend over. "How can I help you."

"Remember how you gave me those daggers, but when I got my Electric Dragon daggers, I didn't use them anymore."

Liz pouted and turned away. "Yeah, and that's the last time I'll help you in that retrospect. What about it?"

Toshiyan pulled out his Electric daggers and placed them on the counter. He then equipped Liz's daggers and placed them on the counter as well. "I heard that you can combine weapons to increase their stats."

"Yeah, it's possible." Liz agreed.

"So, can you combine these two sets of daggers?"

"That depends." she replied. "Are they compatible?"

"Um, do they need to be?" Toshiyan asked.

Liz sighed. "You really don't know how this works? You thought that you could just mix and match any two weapons together? I hate to burst your bubble, but this is a lot more complex than you make it sound!"

"Alright then," Toshiyan replied, reaching for his daggers. "I understand. You aren't skilled enough to fuse them together."

"Excuse me!" Liz retorted.

"I just thought you had a high enough skill in order to do a menial task like merge my weapons. Anyway, I'll just find a more competent smith to-"

Liz shot in front of the exit, blocking her customer. "Let's get one thing straight here! I'm one of the best smiths in Alfheim!" Liz pointed at Toshiyan for effect. "And you better not forget it."

"Then prove it." Toshiyan replied calmly. He pulled out his daggers again and handed them to Liz again.

"I will and when I-" Liz stopped when she realized what was going on. She turned to face Toshiyan, who was obviously hiding a smile.

"You realize I'm just messing with you right?" He asked.

Liz rolled her eyes. "Haha, very funny." She walked back to her counter and beckoned Toshiyan to follow. She went through the back door and turned to face her customer. "This is where the magic happens.

When Toshiyan entered the room, he was amazed at what he saw. It was a large space with almost anything a smith like Liz would need, or what he thought she might need. He turned his attentions back to Liz and his daggers. He saw her compress the items into small icons and then pull out a hammer. She proceeded to start hitting both icons together with her hammer. When it was done, she put the icons in a container and carefully placed them in a furnace.

"Alright, I have a question for you." Liz said.

"Yeah, shoot."

"I kinda want to know about what life was like for you in SAO."

"Oh," Toshiyan said. "I don't know, it's-"

"Please?"

Toshiyan looked at Liz, the look of intrigue on her face. "Why do you want to know?"

"From what Asuna has told me, you were kind a big shot. I want to know."

 _What do I do? If I tell her everything, then she'll hate me._ Toshiyan didn't know how to do it in the best way, but he couldn't let down his friend either. _I have an idea._

"Alright, but it's a long story." Toshiyan replied.

"I've got time." Liz replied, taking a seat on one of her tables.

Toshiyan sighed. "Well, on that first day, I was playing with my sister. We were playing for fun, just like any siblings would."

"What was her name?"

Toshiyan smiled. "Lyn, Lyn Yanada. She helped to beta test the game."

"Really?" Liz replied.

"Yeah, she was really helping me out, but, when we were about to log out-" Toshiyan looked down. "The nightmare began. We were teleported to the Town of Beginnings, and you know how that went."

Liz remembered that quite well. She was trying to make connections with some other players when she was taken to the Town of Beginnings. She was told there that if she died in the game, she would die in real life.

"Go on," she urged.

"Well, after that, Lyn immediately took off. She leveled up so fast that she got an invite into the Knights of the Blood oath within the first few months. I tried to level, but I just couldn't get anywhere. So when Lyn suggested I go on a boss raid with her, I was a little hesitant. However, she was able to talk me into it."

"Was she always like that?"

"Lyn was like any other sibling." Toshiyan continued. "She wasn't perfect, she was headstrong and a little bossy sometimes, but she would always have my back and she cared about me a ton."

"I don't know what that's like. I'm an only child, so when I was trapped, my parents were the only ones worried about me, no one else." Liz said. "But keep going, this is getting good."

"Anyway, I went to floor 37 with my sister, and that was where I met Asuna too. We fought the dragon, you know what that was like from a few weeks ago."

"Yeah, that dragon is a tough boss for sure."

"Yup, it was a battle I'll never forget, and I was fortunate to get the last hit bonus."

"That's really cool!"

"It was dumb luck, but well needed later. The boss drop was the same, those daggers from before."

"Yeah, those daggers that you used to replace mine." Liz whined.

Toshiyan rolled his eyes. "Are you ever going to let that go?"

"Just keep going."

"Fine, anyway, I then spent quite a few months training myself to increase my stats, but I made the mistake of not telling my sister where I went. So, when I got back, it was an interesting experience."

* * *

 _About one year into SAO…_

Asuna walked down the cramped street She was looking for her friend, she hadn't shown up to report for a few days, so she was sent to investigate. NPC Vendors were calling out to her, but she payed them no heed. When she arrived at the desired location, she knocked on the door. A few moments later, the door opened and Lyn was standing in front of her serperior.

Lyn panicked and slammed the door on an unexpecting Asuna. Asuna pounded the door again.

"Lyn, are you alright?" she asked.

Asuna was answered by the door opening again. Lyn was standing in her uniform, acting as if she had been prepared all day.

"Lyn Yanada reporting for duty, ma'am" Lyn said.

"Lyn, I was sent by the commander to check in on you. You haven't shown up in a few days. Is something wrong?"

"What?" Lyn said innocently. "What are you talking about, I'm fine! I was just caught up in something. I'll just equip my sword and-"

"Are you still worried about your brother?" Asuna asked. Lyn paused at this, unsure how to respond. Sighing in defeat, Lyn turned to face Asuna.

"Come inside, we'll talk." Lyn said.

Asuna obeyed, walking inside Lyn's home. Asuna took a seat, but Lyn remained standing.

"I'll get you a drink." Lyn said.

"That won't be necessary." Asuna objected. "Have a seat, let's talk about this." Lyn obeyed, sitting opposite her friend. "What's going on here, you've mentioned that your brother was away, but not much else."

"Five months," Lyn responded.

"What?"

"That's how long he's been gone. Five long months of not knowing where he is, or what on earth he's doing."

"Can't you just track him? He's obviously on your friend list."

"Don't you think that I've tried? I don't know why, but he's blocked me entirely. I have no way of tracking him at all."

"Did he leave anything to let you know where he was going?"

"Not a single thing, I don't even know if he's alive or not!"

"Lyn, you can't think like that." Asuna replied.

Lyn sighed. "I'm so angry with him! You don't even know!" she fumed.

Asuna wasn't so sure about that. She could think of one swordsman in particular that got on her nerves quite often. However,he wasn't important right now.

"Lyn, I'm going to say something, not as your commanding officer, but as your friend. You have to believe that he is alive."

"I know, but he's been gone forever! I'm a little worried."

"Aw, you really do care." a third voice interjected, startling both of the girls. They jumped up, Asuna grasping her rapier, and Lyn equipping her longsword. "Relax, it's just me." Toshiyan said, stepping into the light.

He had shot up about half a foot since Lyn last saw him, and had changed his style significantly. He sported an electric, blue leather chestplate with white highlights, and long, gray pants to enhance his speed from what she could see. He wore his daggers at his sides, easily accessed on dire need.

"Did you miss me ladies?" he asked, walking toward his sister.

"Where were you, you idiot?!" Lyn exploded, punching her brother square in the face. Toshiyan crumpled to the floor. He had no time to prepare for that attack, and had suffered the consequences for it.

"Yeah, great to see you too sis." He grumbled, massaging his nose. He stood up, and turned to Asuna. "Hiya Asuna, great to see you again."

"Nice to see you too, but I'd apologize if I were you." Asuna recommended.

"What, I did nothing wrong."

"Yes you did, where were you the past five months, huh?!" Lyn scolded.

Toshiyan turned to face his sister. "I was training."

"For what?" Asuna asked.

Toshiyan pulled up his character sheet and showed his sister. Not only had he leveled up significantly, but his speed, awareness, and even listening skills were all maxed out. Lyn's jaw dropped at this and she turned to her brother.

"You did all of that, because you got some daggers?"

"Well, yeah. Is that a problem?"

"Yeah, it means that you might actually be as good as me." Lyn replied.

"What, are you jealous?" Toshiyan teased.

"Jealous of my baby brother? Never. Comparing you to me is like comparing a flashlight to a bonfire."

"Yeah, I last longer, and you get put out eventually."

"What!" Lyn retorted. Asuna just watched from the background as the two siblings bickered for a while. When enough was enough, she then got in between the siblings' quarrel.

"Toshiyan we're glad you're back. Out of curiosity, with your new abilities, will you be joining any guilds?"

"That depends," Toshiyan responded. "I'll probably solo for a while, to get my name out there. Then see which one is the best for me to join."

"Well, as second in command of the Knights of the Blood Oath, you can assured that you would be welcome with us."

"Thank you Asuna."

"Well, I have to go, but now that Lyn is a functioning unit again, we'll definitely have enough to fight another boss. Right Lyn?"

"Definitely, and my big-shot brother can join too. That is of course, unless he isn't able to." Lyn taunted.

"You bet your longsword I'm in." Toshiyan agreed.

* * *

"Wow, she really punched you in the face?" Liz asked.

"Yeah, and it really hurt." Toshiyan continued. "In short, I was able to get the attention from some big-shot guilds. However, I ended up joining the Knights of the Blood oath."

"Really?"

"Yeah, everything was doing really well, until-" Toshiyan looked down. "Until it happened."

"What happened?"

"My sister had gotten enough attention to where she was considered a threat."

"To whom?"

Toshiyan struggled. He hated twisting the truth, but it had to be done. "She was killed by Laughing Coffin."

Liz gasped. "I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault." Toshiyan explained. A timer went off and Liz went towards the furnace to pick up the items that were finally done.

"Here, are your new daggers." Liz said.

Toshiyan examined his new daggers. The name had remained the same, the Electric Dragon Daggers. However, the damage rate had increased to match the damage on Liz's daggers.

"Thank you Liz." Toshiyan said.

"No problem, now finish your story." Liz said.

"There's not that much left to finish." Toshiyan confirmed. "I was able to survive long enough to escape SAO, just like everyone else."

Liz nodded. That was definitely one of the happiest days of her life as well. "Thank you." she commented.

"For what?" he replied.

"For telling me about what it was like there for you. I know it must have been hard for you, losing your sister like that. But I know one thing, if you weren't in SAO, you wouldn't be here with us today. We're your friends, and we'll always have your back."

"Thanks Liz," Toshiyan replied. "And thanks for the weapons."

"My pleasure, come back any time." she said.

As Toshiyan left Liz's shop he stared at his daggers. They didn't look any different, but just looking at them was an experience of itself.

 _You're right Liz, if I wasn't in SAO, then I wouldn't be here. And if I wasn't in SAO, no one would have had to suffer for my mistakes._

* * *

 **Boy, wouldn't you like to know what his secret is. I really like writing about sibling relationships; they're really interesting. Anyway, I hope that you liked this chapter. Leave a review on how you liked it. Until next time…**

 **Zippy**


	8. Chapter 7

**Guys, I kid you not, I had to stop writing this chapter for a while because it was emotionally taxing upon me. Sorry about that, it's totally worth the read though (I hope)**

 **Have fun with this.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Toshi had just came back from work. He hung his keys up, while he checked his email. When his inbox opened, he was surprised by an unopened message from Silica. Curious, he opened it to see the following message.

 **Subject: HELP!**

 **Heya Toshi, it's me Silica. I have something really important that I need your help with. Can you help me? Meet me in front of Liz's shop tomorrow at 2. Thanks!**

 **Silica**

Toshi looked at the message, puzzled at the context, or the lack of context. _What could she want?_ He wondered. He looked on his calendar to see that there was an opening. Luckily for him, his work was off tomorrow, because the manager had to hire a mechanic to fix some of the machines.

Toshi opened a new message, directing it at Silica. "I'll be there. I still gotta go meet my parents tomorrow, but I can visit early. They'll like that."

The next day, Toshiyan was waiting outside Liz's shop, just as promised. But he arrived early, and for good reason. His visit with his parents left him, a little concerned. It went fine, but something felt a little off, about his dad in particular. He acted, a little strange. His dad has always been a little blind, he had glasses when he read. But now, Toshiyan noticed that he would always tilt his head a little bit to read. Almost as if, he was trying to read with only one eye.

 _It's probably nothing._ Toshiyan thought to himself. _Dad always struggled to read, but this seems off, even for him._

"Hiya!" Said a familiar voice. Toshiyan turned to see Silica skipping down the road.

"Hey Silica, how are you?" Toshiyan asked.

"I'm fine, but I saw you looked a little down. You okay?"

"It's nothing, I was just in deep thought." Toshiyan replied. "So, why did you bring me here?"

"Well," she replied. "I need your help."

"Yeah, I got that. But with what?"

"Glad you asked." Silica said. "You see, I want this item. It's a beast tamer item, it will increase the catch probability of a familiar by 50%."

"Sounds powerful, but why me?"

"Well, for one, I wanted you so that you could tank for me."

Toshiyan looked confused. "Silica, I can't tank. I'm meant to be at midrange, trying to paralyze my foe. But my health isn't nearly high enough to tank!"

"I meant you could use your daggers. You can paralyze monsters right?"

"Yeah, but that's a 20% chance."

"So you should just hit him 5 times. Besides, Pina can heal you, right Pina?" Silica asked her pet. It crowed in agreement.

"I guess." Toshiyan replied submissively.

"Also, I want to get to know you better." Silica continued.

"I don't know,"

"Please?"

"But-"

"PLEASE?"

Toshiyan looked at her. She had one of those faces that you couldn't say no to. Toshiyan just sighed in defeat.

"Wow, trying to say no to you is like trying to eat a can of spam." He muttered. "I just can't do it. Alright, let's go."

"Yay!" Silica cried.

"So where do we go?"

"I'll show you." Silica said happily. She led Toshiyan out of the city and a ways through the forest. She pointed at a cave located on the side of a large mountain. "This is the dark pass. It supposedly has no end, and no end to it's treasures."

"Are you serious, that sounds rigged. How come no one comes here."

"People who don't know don't come."

"And you're positive that your item is in there?"

"Yep, and you're gonna help me find it."

 _We're going to need more time._ "Do you think that we'll find it in time?"

"Absolutely," Silica replied cheerfully. "Let's go."

 _Wow, she is really cheerful, and really nice when she isn't trying to break my toes._ "Wait for me!" Toshiyan cried.

As the two blazed down the path, they ran into a problem rather quickly. As the tunnel got darker, it became evidently clear that Silica had a hard time seeing.

"OW!"

"What's wrong?"

"I swear, the same rock is hitting my head every time! In the exact same spot!"

"Don't Cait Siths had one of the best eyesight of all the fairy races?"

"Only when there is at least a little bit of light, I can't see anything down here."

Toshiyan shook his head. "We can't fight like this. I can see just fine down here, but you need help." Toshiyan opened his inventory and pulled out a little light stone. "Take this."

Toshiyan tossed the light stone to Silica, which still hit Silica on the head.

"Really?!" Silica fumed.

"Oh, right, sorry." Toshiyan apologized, stooping down to grab the stone. He handed the stone to Silica and she activated it.

"That's better," she said relieved.

"Good now let's-" Toshiyan's expression turned visibly concerned. "Silica, where's your dragon?"

Silica gasped. "She was just here! PINA!" Silica turned around and shot up the tunnel in the opposite direction.

"Silica, wait!" Toshiyan yelled, quickly following. It didn't take long for Toshiyan to finally track down Silica. Pina had flown down one of the other tunnels, whereas Silica and Toshiyan had stuck to the main road. Silica was staring across an empty room, right at her familiar.

"Pina, don't worry, i'm coming!" Silica cried, bolting yet again.

"Silica, don't! There might be a-" Toshiyan was interrupted by an alarm-like noise. As it blared, the entrance behind them closed off. The room was then illuminated by set of blue flames on the upper walls. "Trap." Toshiyan finished. The walls opened up to reveal several, reptilian minions.

"What are they?"

"These are the guards," Toshiyan replied, pulling out his daggers. "You said so yourself, there is an abundance of treasure here. These goons must protect some of it."

Pina had quickly flown over to Silica when the goons began to spawn.

"Let's get out of here!" Silica said worriedly.

Toshiyan just smiled. "Silica, what level are you?"

"Toshi, this is not the time-"

"Please answer me," Toshiyan said, stepping in front of Silica.

"Um, level 46 I think."

"That's it?"

"Hey!"

"Don't worry, just hold on." Toshiyan then charged full speed at the crocodilian minions. He struck each foe so quickly that Silica had a hard time keeping up with him. Lizards fell to the floor, not disappearing, but suffering the effects of the dagger's paralysis. Pretty soon, Silica was witnessing a whole army of goons brought to their knees at the hands of one fairy.

"Alright Silica, it's your turn now," Toshiyan said, panting. "I gotta catch my breath."

Silica only had to hit the enemies once in order to kill them. With each new enemy slain, her experience bar went up. By the time all the enemies had dissipated into shards, she had leveled up three times, and was almost about to level up again. She was interrupted by Toshiyan, who killed the last few creatures before Silica had a chance.

"Hey! What was that for?" Silica complained.

"I wanted some of that experience."

"But I was just about to level."

"You'll get your chance. Now let's get going."

"But wait, we still need to find out what the treasure is."

"Good point," Toshiyan replied. The two went and examined the prize, a beautiful diamond. Silica examined the gem.

"It's called the charm of the serpent. It allows a chance of poison to whoever equips it. Toshiyan, don't you think that-" Silica turned to face Toshiyan, but she was worried at what she saw. Toshiyan had paled, and was trembling slightly. "Toshiyan, what's the matter?"

 _That's-, no, it can't be. Why is that here? That belonged to-, it belonged to the Poison Serpent. He had equipped it, I saw it attached to his cloak. That's not possible, why?_

"TOSHI!" Silica was shouting now. "Snap out of it! What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry," Toshiyan muttered to himself. "I'm so sorry, it was all my fault."

"What's your fault? What's wrong?" Silica said worriedly.

Toshiyan couldn't hear her, he wasn't in the treasure hall. He was stuck back in the empty halls of Laughing coffin's base. He was reliving everything that happened. He saw the Poison Serpent, ruthlessly stabbing Lyn. He was unable to do anything. He was stuck, trapped by the poison, and his own mind.

"Lyn," Toshiyan muttered weakly. Then everything went black.

* * *

 _About one year into SAO…_

Toshiyan was pacing in a waiting room inside of the main building for the Knights of the Blood oath. He was just interviewed by the leading council of that same guild. Outside waiting with him was the defense strategist of the Knights of the Blood oath, his sister Lyn.

"Lyn, do you think that I'll get in?"

"Sure you will, you'll get in. The council would be dumb if they don't accept you."

"Why aren't you in there? You're on the council right?"

Lyn shook her head. "I am, but because I'm your sister, I'm considered partial and am not eligible to decide."

"That's not fair."

"You don't need my help for you to get in. Besides, Asuna is also one of the deciding people, she knows how good you are."

"Okay, that makes me feel a little better."

"Great, don't be scared."

"I'm not scared." Toshiyan replied.

"Sure you're not." Lyn commented slyly.

"Hey, I'll paralyze you." Toshiyan said.

"You couldn't get close enough." Lyn continued.

The door opened leading to the council room and Toshiyan was called inside. The siblings walked inside the spacious room where five seats were placed. In the center, there sat a middle aged man. Lyn had said that he was the commander Heathcliff. To his right sat Asuna, the second in command. To the commander's left sat two other individuals.

"Toshiyan, correct?" The commander asked. Toshiyan gave a small nod affirming. "We, as the council have made a decision."

"And?" Lyn interrupted, trying to figure out what it is.

"We've decided not to allow him to join our guild." another member said.

Toshiyan paled at his answer. Lyn just turned red with rage. "Why not?" she snapped, trying to hide her anger, but failed to do so.

"He would not be able to help us in any way."

"That's a lie!" Lyn shouted.

"Hey, you show some respect to the commander, he's just-" another council member retorted, but a hand from the commander gestured him to stop.

"I'm afraid that he's not eligible to join at this time." Heathcliff continued. "Not only does he not have the credentials to join, but he also does not fit the age requirement."

"Look, as for the credentials, he's one of the best swordsman I know. As for the age requirement, he's six short months away. I don't see why you can't bend the rules a bit, you said so yourself that we need more people to join in the boss fights. Now one of the best comes to you on a silver platter, and you turn him down?"

"While it's true that we need all the help we can get in the boss fights, you, along with all the members of this council, are obligated to follow any and all rules that are formed by this council. If I bend the rules a little bit now, why can't I do it for any swordsman who claims that they're good." The commander replied calmly.

"Look, Lyn, I don't think that you should argue with the commander." Asuna inserted.

"That's not okay, it's just not-" Lyn was interrupted by a hand on her shoulder. Toshiyan looked back at the commander.

"Thank you for your time." Toshiyan said. He turned around and began to walk out of the room. As soon as he was outside, Lyn decided to lecture her brother.

"Why would you do that, you just said no to the biggest guild in Aincrad. Why didn't you just fight them for that spot."

"I didn't turn them down for me. I did it for you."

"What are you talking about!" Lyn exploded.

"Lyn, you're my sister, and I'll love until the day I die." Toshiyan said. "But you argue too much, and you get yourself into trouble more often with your mouth than with your longsword."

"That's not true!"

"You just proved my point. By leaving, I made sure that your standing with the commander did not decrease. Lyn, you're in the council for the freaking Knights of the Blood oath! I'll wait until I fit the requirements. Then I'll try again."

Lyn tried to argue, but couldn't think of anything to say. She looked down and sighed in defeat. "Fine, but what will you do?"

"Lyn, if I had 1 yen for every guild that has sent me an invite to join, or asked me personally, I would be able to buy another NerveGear."

"I sure hope you wouldn't though."

"Yeah, the point is, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

Lyn nodded. "Fine, Mr. Bigshot, but message me when you find another guild."

"I will." Toshiyan confirmed.

Later that evening, Toshiyan had gotten a room in an inn. He was sitting on his bed, looking in his message inbox. He was looking through all of the possible guilds he could join. He had it narrowed down to about five guilds."

"The Liberation army is the one guild that promises the most. I could make a decent income there, and I get 5000 cor just for joining." Then, Toshiyan received yet another invite. He opened it, and skimmed over the message.

Then he stopped at the amount of cor for joining.

"500,000 Cor?!" Toshiyan exclaimed, amazed at the amount. "That'll give a person enough to buy a house!" Toshiyan then began to look at the letter even further.

"This is pretty vague, it won't tell me what guild they represent."

The letter said that Toshiyan was to report to their base in floor 12. However, besides the reward for initial joining, the message did not say anything about the guild.

"This is weird." Toshiyan said. "Why all the secrecy?" Toshiyan looked at the prize money again. He was unsure about the whole ordeal. This letter seemed shady to say the least. He had no idea who these people were. But he also knew that he needed to find a guild to join, and the reward was huge. "I'll do it, just to figure out what's going on. Then, I'll prove to those big shots that they need to make way for the Electric Assassin."

* * *

When Toshiyan awoke, he was lying on the crystal ground in the same treasure room. As his vision returned, his very, very worried partner was looming over him.

"Toshi! You're okay!" She exclaimed, hugging him tightly.

"If you keep on hugging me this tight, I'll pass out again." Toshiyan quipped weakly.

"Oops, sorry." she said, letting go. "What happened?"

While his senses were coming back, he looked to see if the jewel was still there. However, it was gone.

"Where's the gem?"

Silica looked down. "Um, do you remember what happened?"

"Um, no, what happened?" Toshiyan inquired. "Did I hurt you?"

"No, no, but I can't say the same for the jewel." Silica continued.

"What do you mean?"

Silica pointed at the ground surrounding the pedestal that had once held the diamond. There were several shards on the ground, each one bouncing a little reflection of blue from the little light in the room.

"You really scared me." Silica said.

"I'm very sorry, I didn't mean to." Toshiyan said, standing up. "Are you ready to go?"

"I think that a better question is are you ready to go?" Silica replied.

"Silica, I'm fine. Let's just go." Toshiyan said, turning around.

"Um, okay."

As they left the room, Toshiyan took one last look at the shards on the floor. A sense of dread filling his entire person at the sight of it.

"Toshi, are you coming?" Silica asked.

"Yeah," He answered. Then he walked away from the room and the item, but not from the pain they brought.

The two walked in silence for a while. Silica was still processing the events that happened. She didn't know what to say. The way that Toshiyan acted, the pain, the rage. There were so many emotions that were displayed, and he couldn't remember a single bit of it.

"Um, Toshi," Silica asked.

"Why do you keep calling me that? In the game, I'm Toshiyan." He snapped.

"Is there that much of a difference?" She asked.

Toshiyan just kept looking ahead. "Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you like that. What is it?"

"What happened?"

"I don't know what you mean." Toshiyan replied

"I think you do."

"Look, I'm sorry, but I don't think that it will help you to know."

"I don't care, that whole thing that just happened is not what I know to be you. What happened? Why did you snap like that?"

Toshiyan looked down. "I, just panicked, that's all."

"I don't believe that. While you were going crazy, you mentioned a name." Silica continued. Toshiyan still wasn't looking at her, but Silica kept going. "Who is Lyn."

Toshiyan stopped when she mentioned the name. He turned to face his companion. "If you want to know that much, then I'll tell you. Lyn was my sister."

"I didn't know you have a sister. What's she like?"

Toshiyan looked down. "She played SAO with me."

Silica nodded. "Really, I didn't know that."

"Yep, in fact, she was in the same guild that Asuna was in."

"Wow, she was in the Knights of the Blood Oath. That's so cool, I want to meet her."

Toshiyan just looked a little more sad when she said this. "I'm afraid that won't be possible."

"Why?" She asked. Then everything clicked. The way that Toshiyan acted. The way he flipped out at that certain item. Silica knew that the Alfheim had featured some items from SAO, that's why Toshiyan had the daggers he did. Why he mentioned his sister's name. It all made sense, that meant, Lyn was-.

"Oh my," Silica said. "I'm so sorry."

"It's alright, she really would have liked to be here."

"But, why did you freak out at the item."

"Because," Toshiyan struggled to continue. "That item belonged to the person that killed her."

Silica looked troubled at this. "She was killed by another player?"

Toshiyan nodded. "She was killed by a member of Laughing Coffin." he continued.

"Laughing Coffin?" Silica asked. She had heard her share about Laughing coffin. They were a murder guild, they killed hundreds of players back in SAO. She was fortunate enough to never have met them, but she knew how scary it was to go up against some player killers.

"I'm sorry, but i'm really sure she misses you."

 _I wouldn't count on it._ Toshiyan thought.

"How would you know?" Toshiyan said.

"Because," Silica continued. "She was your sister, and as such, she automatically loved you. No matter what happened."

Toshiyan looked at the young swordswoman. _Wow, she has this strange ability of making me feel good._

"Thanks, I needed that." Toshiyan replied. "Now let's get that item."

"Great," Silica replied.

As the two, plus Pina, went down the hallway, they came across a strange board.

"What's this?" Toshiyan asked. He examined it, and to his amazement, a map appeared.

"It's a map!" Silica said excitedly.

"Silica, what was the item's name again?"

"Um, I think that it's the horn of calling."

Toshiyan looked at the map, examining every inch of board. Then he smiled. "There, it says that it's right here.

"Great, let's go."

"There's a problem."

Silica stopped dead in her tracks. "What is it."

"Your item is on a floor 5 levels down from here. That's practically all they've discovered up to this point."

"That's okay, I know that we can do it."

Toshiyan nodded. "Right."

As they proceeded down the staircases and hallways, Silica had another question.

"Toshiyan, what do you think of Sinon."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I think that you like her."

Toshiyan reddened at the comment. "What! What do you mean? I don't know what you're talking about."

"You always are nervous around her."

"No, I'm not."

"Yeah, you are. You hide it very well though, I'll give you that."

"I-"

"I think that you have a lot more in common than you think."

Toshiyan perked up at that. "What are you talking about?"

Silica put a finger up. "Nope, I can't say. You have to find out yourself."

Toshiyan rolled his eyes. "Fine, I see how it is."

"Good that means you're not as blind as I thought."

"Um, thanks?"

"You're welcome."

After a long walk, they finally arrived at the location of the boss.

"You ready to get the item."

Silica nodded. "Let's do it."

Toshiyan entered the room first, with Silica not too far behind.

When they entered the room, it was still all black. Toshiyan had his night vision and had an idea.

"Silica, stay here, I'll get the item."

Toshiyan took flight, being sure to avoid the floor and booby traps. He was able to reach the other side without any problem. He picked up the item and flew back over to Silica.

"That was surprisingly anti-climactic." Silica said.

"Yeah, I wonder why they wouldn't trap the airway around it."

"It doesn't matter," Silica commented. "We got it, isn't it great!"

Toshiyan nodded in agreement. "Yeah, now let's get out of here."

Silica, Pina, and Toshiyan began to walk upstairs. Then Toshiyan began to have a question of his own. "Silica, how did you meet Kirito?"

"Really?"

"Yeah, I kinda want to know. I know that you were in SAO, but other than that, I don't know anything about you."

"All right, it was only fair that you hear a little about me. You see, I started playing SAO when I was 12 years old."

Toshiyan perked up at this. "Are you serious? That's really young to be playing by yourself."

"Yeah, I thought so to. I decided to become a beast tamer so that I could always have someone to hang out with." Silica replied. "That's how I got Pina."

"Really? Toshiyan asked. "I should've figured that. You don't seem the solo player type."

"Yeah, you see, I had actually become one of the greatest beast tamers in SAO. I had a bunch of people who were my friends," Silica paused. "Or at least, I thought that they were my friends."

"What do you mean?"

"They treated me more like a mascot than a part of the team. I remember I got in a fight with one of my party members, her name was Rosalia."

Toshiyan looked visibly concerned at the name. "You sure that was their name?" He said panicked.

"Yeah, why? Did you know her?"

Toshiyan looked down. "Never mind, just keep going."

"Okay," Silica continued. "So, I left my party in the middle of our outing." Silica was blushing. "I was a little cocky, I figured that I could get through the forest by myself."

"Uh-oh,"

"Yeah, I was ambushed by a bunch of giant apes. They had hurt me pretty bad, and I was low on HP. They-" Silica remembered that moment very well. "They killed Pina, and they were about to kill me."

"But," Toshiyan interrupted. "You're still here, so what happened."

"I remember turning around and thinking I was going to die too. Then, the apes disappeared. Kirito had killed them at the last minute. He saved my life."

Toshiyan looked away. "He's not perfect."

Silica turned to face Toshiyan. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that he's not perfect. It's not possible for any normal person to be perfect."

Silica was confused, she had no idea that Toshiyan had this resentment toward Kirito.

"What did he do?"

Toshiyan didn't face Silica. "It's his fault."

"For what,"

"Lyn died, because Kirito refused to help me."

Silica paled. "No, you mean that Kirito just let someone die?"

"I don't know, he was too busy trying to show off to some other big shots that he completely forgot the reason why he went there."

"To do what?"

"They went to Laughing Coffin's base to save my sister. He promised me that she would return safely."

"That doesn't sound like Kirito at all. He must have had a reason."

"Even if he had an excuse, it still doesn't change the fact that he let my sister die." Toshiyan murmured.

Silica thought for a moment. "Do you think that he's sorry?"

"I doubt it." Toshiyan said spitefully.

Silica looked down. "Well, I think that he is. He just, wants you to forgive him."

 _He may want forgiveness, but he's not the only one._ "Well, he may want forgiveness, but he's not getting it from me."

Silica looked a little sad. "It must be a lot of work."

Toshiyan looked at the Cait Sith. "A lot of work for what?"

"A lot of work to hate him so much."

Toshiyan just stared at her puzzledly. _Is this girl for real? Why would she tell me whether something is right or not. She has no right to judge me!_ Toshiyan thought, still feeling a little bit of hurt. Then, that feeling hit him again. That same feeling that he felt during the boss battle on floor 37. That feeling to just trust and forgive.

 _But, is she right?_

Toshiyan sighed, trying, but failing, to shrug the idea off. "Alright, let's get out of here Silica."

"Right." She agreed. They were about to exit the cavern, Silica was starting to get some of her vision back. They could see the end of the tunnel just ahead. Toshiyan then stopped. "Toshiyan, what's wrong?"

Toshiyan immediately turned to face Silica. He extended his hand in her direction. " **Pon-Cru-Cal-Le-Sid-No-Rea** " he exclaimed. The magic that was swirling around him began to swirl around Silica.

"What's going on?" Silica said, shocked at what he had done. Silica looked down at her feet, she was disappearing. Her boots began to become transparent. The feeling rose until her entire body was invisible. Pina had turned invisible as well.

"Wait here," Toshiyan ordered. Toshiyan began to walk ahead, leaving the invisible Silica behind.

"What's going on," Silica said to herself. Then, she saw what was really going on. Three figures were standing at the cave exit. Two Spriggans, and a Salamander, and none of them looked happy.

"Well look there," One of the Spriggans cheered. "A little thief thought that they could steal from us."

"Let me pass, and I might leave the three of you alive." Toshiyan threatened.

The Salamander sneered. "Not a chance, you took something of ours."

"It's not yours, you don't own this cave." Then, it dawned on Toshiyan. He smiled at what really happened. "Wait, you do, don't you. You found this cave, and you take the treasures you find, or steal, and put them in here."

"How do you know?"

Toshiyan pointed at their player IDs. They each showed a purple Icon, displaying a bag of gold. "You are part of the Picky Pirates. I've heard about your guild. You take valuable items from travellers that are weak from boss battles. You kill them and take their loot."

"So what, you know who we are." The Salamander replied. "You should also know that we want what we rightfully stole."

"I'm afraid that it won't happen." Toshiyan said, pulling out the horn. "I'm going to take this to someone who needs it much more than you."

"Tell it to the swords. Get him!" The Salamander ordered. The two Spriggans lunged forward, swords glowing. Toshiyan was ready for this and he pulled out his daggers. He charged forward as well. He slashed at the Spriggans, but the two disappeared when he made contact. Toshiyan looked around, but the two were nowhere.

"I forgot that Spriggans were illusionists. But luckily I got a few tricks of my own." Toshiyan pulled out a pouch of dark sand, and threw it all around him. When the sand made contact with the Spriggans, their magic dissipated and they became clearly visible.

"What the-" One of the Spriggans tried to speak, but Toshiyan was already slashing at him. When the first goon collapsed from paralysis, Toshiyan immediately began to slash at the other one.

"How is he doing that?" The Salamander said, clearly confused.

Toshiyan turned away from the collapsed opponent to face his new target. "I have my own rare items. Take a look," He said, holding up his daggers. "These will paralyze anyone if I hit them enough, and you'll get to experience their power first hand."

"We'll see about that." the Salamander replied, pulling out his own sword. He was about to charge, when he gasped in pain. He was repeatedly being slashed from behind, by a translucent being. He screamed from confusion and pain. Then, he broke apart and a red flame took his place where he stood.

Toshiyan smiled. "Did you level Silica?"

The now visible Silica smiled. "Yep, I sure did."

"Great, now let's get out of here."

The two, plus Pina, exited the cave. Silica took a breath of fresh air. "Thanks for doing this with me."

"Sure thing, I enjoyed it."

Silica opened her menu, and was about to log out, but stopped before doing so.

"Hey, about Kirito, I really think that you should talk to him about what happened."

"You really think so?"

"I know so!" Silica said cheerfully. "I know that you can get along with anyone if you put your mind to it."

Toshiyan nodded. "When did you become so cheesy?"

"I am not!" She retorted.

Toshiyan rolled his eyes. "Alright, I'll think about it, and thank you too."

"For what?"

"For letting me come along, let's do this again."

Silica nodded. "Alright, see you later." And with that, Silica hit the logout button, and disappeared from the world of Aincrad."

Toshiyan was by himself yet again. "I think that I'll log out myself." he muttered. He opened his menu and began to log himself out.

 _How can I even think about forgiving Kirito, when I don't even know how to forgive myself?_

* * *

 **Well, there's another chapter. I hope you guys are liking my story. If you do, please leave a review, and/or follow/favorite my story. Thanks for reading!**

 **Zippy**


	9. Chapter 8

**Alright guys, here's the next chapter. I hope you like it! Oh, and this chapter is just a little bit more serious and dark (It covers the Alfheim Arc, you know what happens at the end #OberonHate). It's not T rated, but may be it's K++. Don't worry, you should be fine.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Toshi slapped his alarm, not sure if he was ready for the day. Today, he would be hanging out with pretty much all of Kazuto's friends, which would normally be a good thing, but today was different. Today was October 7, which was actually Kazuto's birthday. As a member of the group, he had been invited. However, he didn't know if he wanted to go.

A ring from his phone interrupted his train of thought and forced him to get out of bed. He grabbed his phone and answered the call.

"Hello?" he murmured.

"Hey Toshi, it's me Asuna."

"Yeah," he replied, rubbing the tiredness from his eyes. "How can I help you?"

"You got my message right, about the surprise party for Kazuto."

"Yes, I did. You want me to show up at Kazuto's house at 3. Why do you ask?"

"Actually, I need your help."

"With what?"

"I need you to come with me to get some supplies."

"Why do you need my help? It doesn't seem that hard." Toshi said. There was a period of silence on the other end. Toshi made sure that he hadn't muted her on accident. "You still there? Asuna?"

"Yeah, I'm still here. You see, the thing is, i'm not allowed to go by myself. My parents don't like it when I go alone, and everyone else is doing their own thing. You were the only one available."

"So, I was the last resort."

"That's not what I said."

"Alright, so this is what I heard. You need me so that you can leave the house, to do things that you want to do."

"Toshi!" Asuna rebuked.

"Alright, alright, I'll come. Just give me 20 minutes, and where do you even live?"

"I'll text you the address. Thanks Toshi, you're the best."

"You're welcome, see you then."

"Bye."

Toshi quickly got dressed and made himself look presentable. He got into his car and drove back to where the text said to go, but was surprised at the destination. Toshi had no idea that Asuna lived in a house like that, if you could even call it a house. He got out of his car and went to the gate. He pressed the intercom button and waited for a response.

"Yes," The voice on the other end said.

"Um, I'm here for Asuna."

"Yes, come on in."

"Thank you."

The gate then began to open, and Toshi strolled through the driveway. He walked pass some large columns and was about to knock on the door, but it was opened before he could do that by what looked like a butler.

"Hello sir, please follow me." The butler said.

"Okay," Toshi replied. The butler led him to a large room filled with books, and let Toshi walk inside.

"Miss Asuna will be here shortly."

"Alright, thank you." Toshi said, taking a seat on one of the couches in there. The butler turned around the corner, and Toshi was left alone to take it all in. _I wonder what life is like for Asuna?_

"Who are you?" a voice snapped, causing Toshi to jump and look at the person staring right back at him. It was a grown woman, most likely Asuna's mother, wearing a red dress and had dark brown hair. She stared at him with an intensity that was unrivaled. Toshi could clearly see where Asuna got her intense side from. "Well, are you going to tell me, or are you mute?"

"Sorry, my name is Toshimaru, but you can call me Toshi."

"Well, Toshimaru, why are you here?"

"Oh, I'm waiting for Asuna."

"Why?"

"I was going to take her to get some things for Kazuto's birthday."

After that, the woman relaxed a little, but not that much. "Well, if that's the case, I hope that you won't mind if I ask a few questions."

"Um, sure?"

Asuna's mom took a seat on a couch across from Toshi. "You didn't tell me your full name."

"My name is Toshimaru Yanada."

"The fact that I don't recognize that name is a sign that you are indeed my daughter's friend."

"Um, thanks?"

"Very well, that's all I need to know." she said, standing up.

"That was only one question."

"And?"

"Well, you said that-"

"Here I am!" Asuna interrupted. "Thanks for coming when I called Toshi."

"Yes, I'm glad to see you too." Toshi said gratefully "Shall we go then?"

"Yeah, bye mom." Asuna replied to her mother, who did nothing but nod in response. When Toshi and Asuna left, Toshi looked back at Asuna.

"You're mom is really intense."

"Sorry, I didn't think that she would try to interrogate you."

"No, it's fine, I just didn't expect it."

"So, what did she ask you?"

"She just asked for my full name. That was it."

"Why would she do that, that seem weird."

Toshi shrugged. "I don't know, but that's not the point." He said, walking towards the car. "We're out, and that's why I'm here. Now, where do we go?"

"I actually have a list," Asuna replied, reaching inside her pocket.

"Great, let's go."

As the two began to drive throughout the city, they would just sit in silence for a while, with the exception of an occasional direction. It was Toshi that decided to break the silence.

"Hey Asuna,"

"Yeah,"

"You remember when Aincrad ended?"

"How could I forget? It was when Kazuto had a battle with Akihiko Kayaba."

Toshi smiled. "I remember that's when you took my anti-paralysis crystal."

Asuna flushed. "Oh, I'm sorry, I knew that you had an anti-paralysis crystal, and I wasn't really thinking."

"You know, you could've just asked, I probably would've given it to you anyway."

"Still though, I know it probably doesn't mean much to you, but I'm sorry for that."

"It's okay, really. Besides," Toshi continued. "I wanted to know what happened after you got out."

Asuna looked down. "Um, are you sure?"

"Yeah, I mean, I kinda want to know what happened after that."

Asuna looked just a bit uncomfortable, but Toshi was too busy driving to notice. "Well, alright. When Kazuto beat the game, you might of noticed that not all of the gamers got out immediately."

"Yeah, I heard about it," He read an article about how almost 300 people were still trapped with the NerveGear still active. Toshi then realized what happened. "Wait, you were one of those 300?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but, my situation was a little different."

"Go on," Toshi urged.

"Well, you probably know about what exactly happened to them, they were experimented on, but were okay."

"Yeah, that's why you're alright."

"Yeah, but, not all of them were used just for experimentation."

Toshi was unsure what she was talking about. "What do you mean."

"I wasn't there to be experimented on. I was there because the person behind it wanted me there."

"So, he picked you deliberately. Why?"

"Because I knew him in real life. In fact, even though I hated him, I was going to marry him."

"So, why would he keep you in a game, knowing that you were going to marry him anyway?"

Asuna looked a little more pained. "So he could do whatever he wanted with me."

"But, why did he-" Then it clicked. If he was a criminal, he would try to commit the crime somewhere where the proof could be disposed of in minutes or seconds. "Wait, he didn't try to-"

When he saw Asuna's expression, he knew that what he thought was exactly the case. This man had taken Asuna and kept her in the game doing who knows what. Toshi had to deliberately not speed up in shock.

"Asuna, I'm so sorry."

"But that wasn't even the worst part, the worst part was when Kazuto had come to save me."

"Oh no," Toshi wasn't sure if he wanted to know or not.

"You see, he deliberately tortured me in front of Kazuto, hurting me and him."

Toshi couldn't imagine what kind of pain was inflicted then. _Can someone so cruel even exist? Why would someone do that, to Asuna! The person who deserves it the least! How could this happen?_

"It turned out alright though," Asuna continued. "Kazuto beat him, and I got out, and no permanent damage was inflicted."

"No permanent damage! Asuna, how can you not hate him?"

"Because," Asuna replied. "There's really no reason to anymore."

"What do you mean?"

Asuna thought for a minute, then finally remembered something. "My grandfather once told me something about hate. He said this: 'When you hate someone for long enough, then the hurt that you inflict on them with that hate goes right back to you.'"

Toshi thought about this for a minute. Everything Asuna said just described how he felt, but that couldn't be right. _I have every right to hate Kazuto, he let my sister die. He deserves it._

 _Right?_

* * *

 _Still about 1 year into SAO…_

Toshiyan walked out of the the teleporter of floor 12, and looked at the town around him. He saw players and NPCs socializing. He strolled around the town, following the instructions given by the message.

When he left the town, he was instructed to go to a cave located in the west side of the floor. Toshiyan looked at the cave, unsure if he should continue. He then remembered how much this guild would benefit him. He forced himself to go in.

He walked down the long corridor, gears turning inside his head about the point of all of this.

"This is a really secluded spot, why would they put their base here?"

Toshiyan entered a large opening at the end of the cave, where large blue mushrooms grew beside him. He noticed a large gate in front of him as well. As he walked towards it, he could see a figure just in front of the door. It appeared to be a skeleton with armor and a long torn up robe.

It took Toshiyan a second to realize that he was not a skeleton.

"Who are you?" The figure asked.

Toshiyan jumped back, daggers in hand. But the figure didn't say anything else.

"I-I was summoned here with a message."

"May I see the message?" The figure inquired. Toshiyan complied, opening his menu and revealed the message. The figure looked it over and nodded. "Yes, go inside, everything will be explained.

"Wait, do you know what the name of the guild is?"

However, the figure didn't say anything else, but the door behind him opened. Toshiyan walked past him, unsure what else to do. When he walked inside, the first thing he noticed was the lack of people there.

"Where is everybody," Toshiyan asked, activating his awareness skill. However, even with the enhanced awareness, Toshiyan couldn't see anyone. He looked around, but finally, saw a nametag. Toshiyan made his way through the maze of halls, trying to get toward the nametag. As he got closer, he noticed one crucial detail. The name tag had no crystal over it.

"What is going on? Why doesn't that have a name tag over it?" Toshiyan was second guessing himself, unsure what to do.

"Who are you?" A voice from behind him said.

Toshiyan spun around, his hands on his daggers. He saw who was talking to him. It was a rather well dressed man who looked in his early twenties, donning a green cloak that looked well kept. He also wore a pendant with a white jewel in the middle.

"I'm Toshiyan, I was called here to-"

"So you're the famous Electric Assassin? I would never have guessed that someone so young would have been given such a title."

"Why was I called here?"

"Well, isn't it obvious, we want you in our guild. Our guild number is low, we're relatively new, and on top of that, we have a good cause."

Toshiyan put his daggers away. "Finally, I'll get some answers."

"Yes, you see, our guild's name is the Skeleton Smashers. You wouldn't have heard of us. Our noble leaders summon the best of the best to fight for our cause."

"And that is?"

He smiled. "We hunt red players." the man responded.

Toshiyan was surprised. He had never heard of a guild that specifically hunted down red players. Suddenly, it all made sense. This guild was trying to keep itself a secret so that it wouldn't be targeted by the players it was trying to target.

"So why do you want me?"

"You have a very specific skillset. You would be very handy in our crusade to stop the very people who destroy innocent players. We figured that you would be willing to help us. So, we messaged you, and you came."

Toshiyan was still trying to take it all in. "But, why do you kill the red players? It just seems counter productive."

"Think of it this way," the man continued. "If a player kills another player, why should that player be allowed to live? They'll just keep killing others, and no sane person wants that. So, why would you allow others to suffer? Besides, there's no place we can keep them, they could just teleport out, or people would get suspicious about how more and more food was required for a small guild"

Toshiyan knew he made a valid point. The man seemed to be telling the truth, and he knew that the more player killers there were, the more people died. And Toshiyan agreed, he didn't want people to die.

"Alright, I'm in. What's your name."

"My name isn't important, but you may call me the Poison Serpent."

"Okay, so, when do I start?"

"I'll send you a name, and you need to eliminate them."

"So, when do I officially join the guild?"

Poison Serpent shook his head. "No no, we don't officially join. That would blow the operation. Any player could just look us up, and we don't want that."

"Yeah, your right," Toshiyan agreed. "Anything else I need to know?"

"Yes, I actually have something for you." The Poison Serpent tossed a small item to Toshiyan. When Toshiyan examined it, his eyes widened. It was called the Ring of Farsight. It could increase a person's vision by 25 points.

"Thank you,"

"Yes, but you best go, we don't want anyone to know you were here."

"Alright, and thanks again." Toshiyan replied running off. The Poison Serpent waited until Toshiyan was gone, then his smile deepened.

"Foolish boy, just because your obedient, does not mean that you are smart."

* * *

"So this whole you being kidnapped thing didn't last forever, what happened after that?" Toshi asked, trying to change the subject.

"Well, not much happened after that, not up until recently."

"What happened?"

"Let's see," Asuna replied. "I think it happened not long after Shino joined the group. There was this fighter, who was offering an eleven hit combo move if they beat them."

"An eleven hit combo? I don't think I've ever seen you use it."

"Actually, I did use it in our group's last few boss raids."

Toshi was puzzled that he never noticed such a feat. "That sounds really powerful," Then Toshi had a thought. "Did Kazuto go after it?"

"Yeah, he did."

"He got it right?"

"Actually, no."

This shocked Toshi even more than realizing the existence of that move. "What happened?"

"I'll explain later. Anyway, most everyone tried to go up against this fighter, who named themselves Zekken. I took a go at it, but before I keep going, what do you guess the fighter was like?"

Toshi thought about it for a minute, pondering about what a fighter who could take down Kazuto was like. "I got nothing, what did he look like."

Asuna smiled. "Actually, her name was Konno Yuuki, and she was about Silica's age."

All of Toshi's visions of the swordsman fizzled. "Are you purposely trying to blow my mind right now?"

"I'm not kidding," Asuna replied. "Anyway, I fought her, and she was definitely a tough swordswoman."

"Did you win?"

"No, not officially, she kind of asked me to join her group halfway through our duel. She was part of the guild called the sleeping knights."

"Wait, can you do that? Stop a duel half way through?"

"Well, technically no. However, I count her grabbing me and flying me into the tree above us ending the duel."

"Good point, but, I have one more question. I know that you're a really good swords woman, but how come that she chose you instead of Kazuto."

"I actually asked that same question." Asuna continued. "She replied that Kazuto found out her secret."

"And that was?"

"She wouldn't tell me, but I figured it out eventually."

"Seriously, why aren't you telling me?"

"I am if you would stop interrupting me."

"Alright, alright, keep going."

"Thank you, anyway, I joined their guild called the Sleeping knights, and we took down the boss on floor 29."

"That had to be a really big guild then."

"Actually, there were seven of us."

Toshi's eyes widened, but after that, he just smiled. "Lighting Flash, you never cease to amaze me."

"After that, they just said for me to forget them."

Toshi's smile morphed into a frown of confusion. "Why did they do that?"

"Kazuto actually told me that. He told me to go to a hospital, where I found out why the guild pushed me away." Asuna looked down. "It turns out that they were using something called medicuboid."

"What's that?"

"Put simply, it uses the Amusphere to basically allow people who had serious health problems to survive in games like ALO."

"Sounds nifty, and all of these friends in the Sleeping knights had a serious health condition."

Asuna nodded. "Yeah, and Konno in particular had AIDS. When I saw her in real life, she was locked in a room with a huge Amusphere attached to her head."

Toshi almost cringed at the sound of that. It sounded painful, and something he wouldn't want to experience. "I'm very sorry, how is she now?"

Asuna looked down. "I'm afraid that she passed away a few months ago."

Toshi didn't know what to say. _That's not fair, what part of that was decent. No one deserves to die like that-_

Toshi stopped himself after that point, chastising himself slightly. _Don't be ridiculous, she died peacefully, unlike others I've met._

"Toshi, I have a question for you."

"Yeah," Toshi replied. "Go ahead."

Asuna was a little reluctant to bring this up, but knew that it had to be asked. "Toshi, Silica told me about what you told her."

Toshi's eyes widened. "About what?"

"She told me that you despise Kazuto."

Toshi sighed. "Of course she did."

"It's not her fault, she was worried, and she told me about what happened. Don't take it out on her."

"I know, I won't." Toshi replied.

"So, why?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why do you hate Kazuto?"

Toshi scowled, not sure where to begin. "Asuna, he let Lyn die."

Asuna stared at him, shocked. "That's simply not true."

"Then explain to me how he promised me that Lyn would be alright, and then the time came when he needed to act, and he turned around and ran the other way."

"No, Kazuto was just trying to save as many people as he could."

"And yet, he forgot the whole reason why we went there." Toshi argued.

"He did his best to help-"

"Well, he didn't help me!"

"He is a great person that tries his best to help everyone."

"Then why didn't he help me when I needed it! I trusted him like I trust you now. He was the only person that could've helped me."

"Toshi, I can't make you hate Kazuto less, but Lyn didn't die because of him."

"Then who do I blame?"

"You shouldn't be blaming anyone."

"No, you don't understand Asuna, I blame Kazuto because I have to!" Toshi shouted. This drove silence into Asuna, who was unsure how to respond. Toshi immediately felt guilty for his outburst. "I'm sorry, that was uncalled for."

"It's alright, but what do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter, we're here anyway." Toshi replied, pulling to a stop. Asuna looked up and found that they had pulled into the parking lot of the store that she needed to go to. "Go inside, I'll stay here." He responded, trying to hide his own bitterness.

Asuna was about to argue, but stopped herself before she said anything. "Alright," she said, getting out of the car.

As she walked away, Toshi began to drift in thought. _Are you serious, of course she would side with Kazuto. I don't know why she cares so much to defend him. It is his fault._ As Toshi tried to reason with himself, he got more and more pained for his actions. _I shouldn't be mad at Asuna. Through all of this, she's been kind and forgiving to me. I'll apologize when she gets back._

About half an hour later, Asuna returned to the car with party supplies in hand. When she opened the door, Toshi still sat there silently. She sat down and both were silent. However, it was obvious that they were thinking very similarly.

"Asuna, I'm-"

"I'm sorry Toshi."

Toshi stopped mid-sentence. "For what? I was the one who got mad at you."

"I started it. I shouldn't have brought it up, but as great as you are, you share the quality of Lyn in your love for argument."

"I know, and in all seriousness I was taking my anger out on you when I shouldn't have. I'm sorry too."

"Great," Asuna replied cheerfully. "Let's get these back to Kazuto's house so we can set this up."

"Alright," Toshi said, starting the car.

As the Toshi kept driving, Asuna had one thing on her mind, but was unsure if she should ask him.

"Hey Toshi, I have another question."

"Yeah,"

"Do you think that people should talk when they're in a relationship."

"What do you mean?"

"Well I don't mean to point fingers, but, I really struggle with Kazuto."

"Wait, what?" Toshi asked. "But, you two are one of the coolest couples around."

"It's only this one thing, but I need to tell you. Kirito won't talk to me, I mean, he won't tell me about what's going on with his life. I know that when I struggle, Kirito will be there for me, but it hurts me to see that I can't do the same."

Toshi thought about this, unsure about how to respond. He could throw Kirito under the bus, or help Asuna out. At first, both seemed like valid options, but then he remembered about how he was dealing with Asuna. He knew that she loved Kazuto, and he was good with it. All he wanted was for Asuna to be happy.

"If you ask me, you shouldn't be asking me." Toshi reasoned.

"What do you mean?"

"I think that you should talk to Kazuto about it. He seems like the kind of guy to help you out, especially if you ask him. I recommend you just confront him about."

Asuna thought about that for a moment, and then smiled. "Thanks Toshi, I really needed that."

"No problem."

When they arrived at Kirito's house, Liz was there waiting for them. "Where were you guys? We were supposed to start setting this up a half hour ago."

"Sorry, but I got them." Asuna said.

"Good, you should tell me about where to put them so that we can do this."

"Alright, follow me." Asuna replied happily.

As Toshi watched them walk off. He had a bit of a realization. He had isolated himself from people ever since SAO ended. _But now that I have friends, I feel so much better._ However, as he recollected the events that occurred in Aincrad, the pain began to return. _But there was a reason why I isolated myself from people. I didn't want to hurt anyone anymore._

 _Never again._

* * *

 **Well, first things first, I'm sorry for not having this chapter up faster. My life has been hectic recently. Anywho, if the chapter feels a little weak, again, I'm sorry. I really didn't plan on having this chapter to begin with and-**

 **Kirito: STOP RIGHT THERE!**

 **Me:(Turn Around) Oh, hi Kirito, what brings-**

 **Kirito: There's another part of the story that the readers need to know about.**

 **Me: Wait, what?**

* * *

Asuna came home after a long day, a happy, but long day. Only to have her mother awaiting her.

"Hello Asuna, how was your party." she tried at sounding curious.

"It was fine, thanks."

"If you don't mind, then I have a concern about your friend."

Asuna grumbled. "Mom, we already talked about this, I thought you were alright with Kirito."

"Your boyfriend Kazuto is, acceptable. Definitely not what I had in mind, but acceptable. I mean about your friend Toshimaru."

Asuna cocked her head in confusion. "What do you mean."

"I did my research on him. I don't think you should be around him."

"What's wrong with him? He's one of the greatest, kindest people I know." Asuna argued. "And I thought that you would stop trying to background check my-"

"Would it interest you to know that Toshi spent a large amount of time as an orange player in SAO?" Asuna's mother asked. "I'm no expert in the game, but I know what being an orange player means. Did you know about this?"

Asuna panicked suddenly, not sure how to react. She knew exactly what was going on. However, if her mom knew, she would never hear the end of it. And no one deserves to be on the other end of her mother's wrath, especially Toshi.

"No, I did not." Asuna lied.

"That is alright, however, the only reason that he was not arrested was because of classified evidence strictly for the judge only. However, I still don't trust him, and I will get to the bottom of this. Thank you for your input, now go to bed."

"Yes mom." Asuna replied, walking upstairs. Asuna knew what was going on, but for Toshi's sake, she needed to keep this a secret from her mother.

* * *

 **Me: There Kirito, you happy?**

 **Kirito: Yeah, now if you'll excuse me, I have a date with Asuna, so see ya!**

 **Me: Bye! (Kirito leaves) Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. I tried to spice it up at the end. Please leave a review, I promise the intense stuff is going to start very soon. See ya!**

 **Zippy**


	10. Chapter 9

**Well, here it is, I had to decide whether I would my Fnaf story or this one, and I chose this one. I hope you're ready, because we're about to get some shipping! Good luck, and may your fleet prove victorious! Oh, and just to clarify, I don't own SAO, or anything cool for that matter. *Sniffle* Just read it, I'll see you at the end. *Starts to cry and you don't notice***

 **Zippy**

* * *

"Is that everything sir?" The florist asked. Toshi grabbed the flowers and placed the money on the counter.

"Yeah, that's everything. Thank you." Toshi replied.

"Come back any time." She said, as Toshi walked out. He placed the flowers next to him as he got in his car. However, he didn't start it right away, he just stared at them. They weren't very different from any other flower, they were just some violets he picked out. _Purple, that was her favorite color._ He then started his car and began to drive off.

When he arrived at his desired location, he got out of his car and started toward the Serenity Memorial Park. As he walked through the main gate, he saw the hundreds of tombstones that lined all across what he could see. He navigated a good chunk of the tombstones when he saw the one he was looking for. As he approached it, he was able to see the inscription labeled on it.

 _Lyn Yanada: Daughter, Sister, Friend._ Toshi carefully put the flowers by the tombstone and just stared at it. He wasn't able to attend the funeral, he was still in SAO at the time. However, despite all the time that had passed, this was only the second time that he came to her grave. He wondered if he should say something, but decided against it.

 _Lyn, I don't know whether or not to say anything. I know that you might listen, but what could I say to you that would make what happened to you alright? You're here because of me, I wasn't good enough to save you. On top of that, you wouldn't even be in danger if it wasn't for me. I was too confident in my own abilities that I lost you. Now, when I need you the most, I'm lost, and there's nothing that I can do to get you back. I'm so sorry._

The spring wind began to blow a little bit, and Toshi looked up to notice gray sky overhead. He sighed as he realized what he was doing wrong. _You wouldn't want to forgive me, and I can completely understand that. I know that you probably hate me along with many other people I've hurt._

Suddenly, he felt a buzzing in his pocket. He reached for his phone and examined the source. He had gotten a text from Shino, and when he read it, he got really worried, really fast.

 **Shino: Toshi, I need your help, please meet me at the police station. It's really important.**

 _Oh my goodness. What has Shino done to go to the police station? Also, why am I the Uber driver of this group?_ Toshi sighed in defeat. _Well, if she needs my help, then I'll go._ Toshi immediately ran to his car, typing in his reply.

 **Toshi: I'm on my way, hold on.**

Toshi hurried in his car towards the police station, trying to contemplate why Shino was at the police station. _What happened, and why? Did she get hurt? And most importantly, why am I going to the police station!_ Toshi wondered. _This has to be serious, I better hurry._

Toshi went as fast as legally possible, each prolonged minute probing his curiosity, and his worry. Finally, at least an eternity later, he arrived at the police station. He scanned around the police station in his car, and saw her sitting on a bench outside of the station. He turned off his car and went to go meet her.

"Shino, are you alright?"

Shino looked up and met his eyes. Her cheeks were stained with tears, which just further confused Toshi. "You came." She said quietly.

"Yeah, um, what's going-" Toshi started, however, he was interrupted when Shino jumped up from the bench and pulled him into an embrace. This stunned Toshi, making him more and more confused by the minute. However, seeing how much Shino needed this at the moment, he hugged her back. As soon as they pulled away, Toshi met Shino's eyes again. "Shino, what's going on?"

"I'm sorry Toshi, I just don't know what to do."

Toshi sat down on the bench and motioned for Shino to do the same. "I'm listening."

Shino took a seat, and looked down. "I-" She started. "I went to go visit a friend in jail right now. He's been through a rough time right now, but he's my friend, so I visit him."

Toshi nodded. "Right, but, why is he in jail then?"

Shino looked down. "That's a bit of a long story."

"I got time."

"You see, before I met Kirito and his group, I avoided as many people as I could. I worked in a game called Gun Gale online, and my only real friend was Kyouji,"

"I see, continue."

"I knew him for many years. Ever since I was young, I had a tough time. He helped me cope with all of my problems. He was the one person that I could confide in."

Toshi pondered on this for a while. Kyouji seemed to be the type of friend that Lyn was to Toshi. _What I'd pay for a friend like that immediately after SAO._

"The one thing that went wrong was that I didn't love him the way he loved me. However, he was able to look past that and we remained friends. However, then Kirito showed up, and then he changed. He saw how close I got to Kirito and he felt threatened. He became possessive over me and threatened to kill me if I didn't do what he said. Luckily, Kirito came and saved me, but because I always wanted my friend back, I would come and visit him."

Toshi nodded. "I wish I was strong like that."

"What?"

"I never would've done that if I was in your shoes, but I'm assuming that these visits had something to do with what happened tonight?"

Shino nodded. "I came again tonight, and he asked me about how my life is going. I told him that everything was going alright, and he told me that his case is going to be reexamined by the court in a few weeks. However, it only went downhill from there. I then told him a little bit about you, and how you had joined the group, and I was just really happy at this point in my life. However, then he just, lost it."

"Why?"

"I don't know, he then claimed that I was betraying him and that I was a terrible coward who can't ever care about anything, and likewise, no one could ever care about me. I just kept listening as he was trashing me, Kazuto, and you, and-" Shino began to tear up again. "It really hurt me to see a friend that I had trusted and respected so much say that to me, even after everything that's happened."

Toshi looked down. _It makes no sense, why would her best friend treat her with such disrespect, especially since she cares enough to come and visit him. Does he even realize what he did to her?_ He looked at Shino again, who was trying to wipe the tears off her face. Despite her efforts, she still felt the sting that conversation.

"Shino, can I say something?"

She nodded. "Sure,"

"He seems to be, um, mentally unstable from what you've said. I would take his words with a grain of salt. Remember, he only wants you to be happy with him."

"Yeah,"

"He is mentally unwell, and there's nothing you or I can do about that. However," Toshi placed his hand on hers. "You know it's not true, and so does everyone else. It was wrong for him to do that."

"But, how do I know if he's right?" Shino commented. "I-, I'm not exactly known for being that open with people. How can I know for sure that the others care about me?"

Toshi grabbed Shino's hand, causing Shino to look up at him. "Shino," Toshi said. "Do you care about Kirito and the others?"

"Yeah, but-"

"Then they care about you. I know for a fact that a lot of the group members in our group care a lot about you, and look up to you. They love and respect you, and me included." Toshi explained.

Shino looked puzzled at Toshi. "You, really do care about me?"

"Shino, why do you think I'm here? You guys have been one of the best things to happen to me for a long time."

Shino nodded. "Thank you Toshi, I really needed to know that."

"No problem," Toshi said, standing up. "You alright to go home then?"

"Yeah, I drove here. Sorry for dragging you out here for such a petty reason."

"It was nothing, if you need to talk about anything, you can talk to me."

"Thanks again."

As Toshi got back in his car, he sighed a little bit. He wasn't sure what to think about that entire experience. _I had never seen Shino act like that. She was always able the silent, kickbutt archer who was always calm and collected._ Toshi thought about this a little more, but then came the largest question.

 _Why did she ask for me?_

* * *

 _About year into SAO…_

Toshiyan examined the unopened message in his inbox. It had come from Poison Serpent, telling him which red player needed to be taken out. As he examined the message, he made sure to scan over as many details about the player killer as possible.

 **Name: Rosalia**

 **Dangerous: Extremely**

 **Description: She has red hair, and carries a large spear with her. After robbing them, she is known for killing her victims. Expect her to be surrounded with other red players for protection, as she is also a leader of their bandit guild. Remember, do not hesitate to kill her, as she will not hesitate to do the same to you. We've located their base to be on floor 9, in the Forest of Shadows**

Toshiyan continued to read the message, unsure about what to do next. He couldn't help but dread the idea of killing anyone, even a red player. He stared at the message, almost afraid to put it away. Then the words of Poison Serpent came to his mind. 'They'll just keep killing other players.' Serpent's words echoed. Toshi knew that he couldn't turn back now. He had to make sure that these red players would be stopped.

He arrived at floor 9, perfectly equipped, and made his way towards the forest. As he made his way to the destination, he passed quite a few players, most of them at about level thirty or so.

"Figures," Toshiyan mumbled. "If I was a bandit, I would target middle ranged players as well. High enough levels to where decent items could be found, but low enough to where a group could easily take them out."

He arrived at the forest as the sun was beginning to set. He looked around, there weren't that many players nearby. He continued along the path, knowing that if he was a less than careful, he could be jumped by these bandits. He wasn't told how high a level they were, but he just assumed that because these bandits were hunting mid level players, they were about level 35, give or take.

The sun began to lower out of sight, and he was questioning if he would find them. He had searched for quite a while; would he have to come back tomorrow? He decided to make one last round of the forest path, then try again tomorrow. However, as he was making his last round along the forest, his listening skill kicked in and was surprised to hear someone.

The voice was faint, but still clearly hearable, "Help!" the voice cried. Toshiyan immediately stopped, in case he might walk out of it's range by accident. He waited just a moment, hoping the voice would appear again. "Someone help me!" it cried again.

Toshiyan immediately ran in it's direction, away from the path. His awareness skill kicked in and he was able to see a nametag. He stopped and opened his inventory, equipping the Ring of Farsight, and the impact was tremendous. He was suddenly not only able to see the nametag, but the person themself. She appeared to be fighting a certain monster on her own, and was struggling to do so. He lunged into action.

With his speed maxed out, it didn't take long for him to appear at the scene. He unsheathed his daggers, and went to work on the beast, a large plant like creature with large tentacles. He slashed at it with his daggers, and it wasn't long before paralysis appeared on the monster. The mighty tendrils the monster had began to droop and fall to the ground. He continued to slash at it, until finally the monster disappeared.

Toshiyan sheathed his daggers, and turned to look at the person he just saved, he was unsure how to respond. She wore what appeared to be fur, and had short red hair. Her crystal was indeed orange, and on top of that he was even more concerned when her name tag was labeled Rosalia.

"Thank you for saving me," Rosalia said.

"Oh," Toshiyan replied, snapping out of his daze. "You're welcome, uh, Rosalia."

"You're really brave to rush in and save me like that, so far from the path."

"Yeah, no problem," Toshiyan replied. However, Toshiyan was unsure what to think right now. In what dimension was this woman a red player? She didn't look the part, and on top of that, if she was as dangerous as the Poison Serpent claimed, then why was she in trouble in the first place? He didn't know what to do, all he wanted was out. This whole situation just seemed, wrong. "I'm sorry, but I think that I need to go."

"Oh, but surely there was something that I could do to pay you back." she replied.

"I don't think that's necessary, I'll just-"

"Please, you just saved my life, it's the least I can do."

Toshiyan was growing more concerned. Why would this woman, who appeared to be a little older than Lyn, show this much interest in a teenager like him. It appeared odd, at best. _I need to get out of here._

"I really don't need anything, but if you really want, I suppose that you can pay me some Cor if you want."

She frowned. "Oh, um, alright," Rosalia opened her menu, and started to transfer the Cor, but Toshiyan started to rethink this situation. _Wait, what if Serpent is wrong. If I go along with what she says, then may be I can find out whether this woman is as dangerous as she claims to be._

"On second thought, tell me what you had in mind." Toshiyan offered.

The smile on Rosalia's face reappeared. "Thank you, I'll make sure you don't regret it."

Rosalia led Toshiyan towards the path. However, when they arrived there, Rosalia led Toshiyan in the opposite direction of the town.

"Wait, the town is in the other direction, where are we going?"

"You'll see, just trust me."

 _It's a trap_. Toshiyan thought as he walked along the path. He made sure that his attack gear, specifically his daggers. However, he acted natural when Rosalia stopped. "We're here."

Toshi examined his surroundings. They were in another open area, surrounded by trees, and far enough away from the path to where even his enhanced eyesight could see the path.

Then, it all went downhill. His awareness skill kicked in, and nametags all around appeared. Each and every name was accompanied with an orange crystal. Suddenly, everything made sense. She had set him up; she had played him into a trap. He looked at her with disgust.

"You set me up!" Toshiyan exclaimed.

Suddenly, Rosalia just changed. Her smile became cruel, and she looked, meaner. She pulled out her weapon and just smiled.

"You must have a really good awareness skill if you can see them."

"You don't know the half of it," Toshiyan replied, unsheathing his daggers.

"Really, let's test that theory." Rosalia said. She then snapped, and a variety of other orange players appeared, each of them looking quite menacing. Toshiyan did a headcount, and totaled about 7 other players, Rosalia included.

"So, what now?" Toshiyan asked. "You all are going to kill me right?"

The enemy group stared at him, obviously confused. "Yeah, unless you give us all your Cor, and your valuable items."

Toshiyan nodded. "Alright, now this is how this will go down. You are going to try and attack me, and all of you are going to be paralyzed."

Each of the opposing members looked at each other, unsure what to do. Finally, Rosalia made the executive call. "What's the matter with you all! I went through all that work to get him here, and you're all psyched out because of the Black Swordsman incident! News flash people, he's not here. Now kill this idiot and take his items!"

Now the henchmen launched themselves forward, but Toshiyan was prepared. He avoided the attacks and narrowly sliced them as he dodged their attacks. It was only a matter of time before one of the goons collapsed to the ground, leaving the other fighters in a stupor of shock. Toshiyan took this opportunity to continue to paralyze all of the enemies. He watched as there were only four standing, then three, then two, then one.

Rosalia watched as her guards crumpled to the ground. She grumbled something, and pulled out her spear. "Do I have to do everything myself?" she murmured.

"Pretty much," Toshiyan argued. "I'm sorry Rosalia, I didn't want to have to kill you. But you proved to me that you nothing more than an orange player and a murderer."

"Agree to disagree, I actually hardly do any of the killing." Rosalia argued. "I leave that to the others; however, I'm willing to make an exception." Rosalia charged at him, and Toshiyan charged as well. She swung her large spear, but Toshiyan's was far too fast for a weapon as large as a spear to hit him that easily. While she was recuperating for another attack, Toshiyan had already sliced her plenty of times. He jumped back, positive that Rosalia would collapse to the ground, unable to fight back from the paralysis of the daggers. However, despite his thoughts, Rosalia stood strong.

"Hey, why aren't you paralyzed?"

"Neat item I picked up. It makes me immune to cheap tricks like your dagger's paralysis. I kinda want those though. Are you willing to part with them?"

"Not likely,"

"Not even for a pretty girl like me?"

"What do you take me for? An angsty teen with no sense?"

"You fit the part if that's what you mean."

"We'll see about that." Toshiyan argued. He lunged at Rosalia, and continued to hack at her. She wasn't able to fight back, and watched as her health bar went down. Toshiyan then knocked the spear out of her hand and kicked her to the ground, bringing her HP down to dangerously low numbers.

"Wait, you can't kill me! If you do, then you'll turn orange." Rosalia argued. "Please don't kill me!"

Toshiyan hesitated. He realized that this player was dangerous, but, taking someone's life? That was, too much. He lowered his daggers and hesitated. "Fine, I'll let you go, but you must promise not to ever hurt another player."

"Alright, I promise, you'll never see me again." Rosalia replied.

Toshiyan, feeling confident, sheathed his daggers. He began to walk away, and Rosalia stood up, picking up her spear, hands clenching the spear.

"No one, makes a fool out of me!" Rosalia shouted, charging at the teenager. Toshiyan, mildly expecting this, unsheathed a dagger, stepped around the spear lunge, and stabbed her in the back. Rosalia collapsed to the ground and then disappeared into crystals. The Electric Dragon dagger fell to the ground, sticking out of the ground.

Finally, the reality of what happened took it's toll on Toshiyan, he kneeled down and just stared at his dagger. He felt tears begin to well up as he stared at the dagger. There was no trace of the body on the ground. Even the footsteps where she was standing were gone. Any other person wouldn't know what happened here. Toshiyan couldn't keep it in anymore, tears began to roll down his cheeks.

He started to pound the artificial grass. "Wait, please, bring her back!" Toshiyan's tears just kept rolling, as he realized that he took his first life in the death game.

* * *

 **Alright guys, here's the deal. I know that you were expecting this big dramatic thing to happen after the flashback section, but here's the thing. I'm actually going to get the plot going after this next chapter. So, the timing is going to be just a little bit off, because I believe this next part deserves a chapter of it's own. You should get it rather quickly actually. Be sure to tell me how I did, and-**

 **You: But Zippy, Rosalia is a green player! Sure she's a jerk, but, she's a green player none the less!**

 **Me: True, but Toshi doesn't know that.**

 **Zippy**


	11. Chapter 10

**Here's the next chapter, I thought it would be best to put this in a separate chapter than the last one. There's also no flashback, but you'll find this chapter very illuminating about Toshi's past. Oh, and bring your ships if you can. Here it is!**

 **Zippy**

* * *

For once in Toshi's life, everything was going alright.

Toshi had gone on more outings with his friends, both in ALO and in real life. He enjoyed each of their outings, and it was nice to have people who listened to him. It was nice to feel, wanted. He didn't know how else to describe it. He loved to hang out with his friends, especially with Sinon.

Silica was right to say that he and Shino had a lot in common. She was really interested in fighting crime, and was looking at a degree in law enforcement in college. She was working towards being a policewoman and was determined to help save other people. This really stuck out to Toshi, and he was kind of drawn to this. Both Toshi and Shino dated a few times, and Toshi felt a connection between them. All in all, he was really happy, but, there was only one thing that he noticed.

Kirito, both in ALO, and in real life, tended to avoid Toshi. He was polite, and didn't ignore Toshi, nevertheless, he couldn't help but feel a sense of discomfort from Kirito. However, Toshi really didn't mind. He didn't want to talk to Kirito just as much as Kirito tried to avoid him.

But overall, his life was at it's peak. Toshi felt peace, just like SAO never existed. He was able to forget all the pain, just for a moment.

And then that moment ended.

Toshi was driving towards his parents' house, a smile on his face. He hadn't visited in awhile, he wanted to stop by with a surprise visit. However, he was deeply concerned when he saw emergency vehicles parked in front of his parents' house. He parked quickly, and ran towards the scene. He saw his mom sobbing on the front porch and went to question her first.

"Mom, what's going on!" Toshi asked his mother, deeply concerned.

"Toshi, it's your father, he's-"

She was interrupted by some emergency personnel pushing their way past Toshi and his mother. They were rolling Toshi's dad in a stretcher towards the ambulance, and Toshi's dad wasn't looking well at all. He was unconscious, and his left side was sagging.

"What's happened to him!" Toshi demanded.

"These people told me that your father has suffered from a stroke." Toshi's mother replied. Toshi watched as they loaded his father in the ambulance. Toshi's dad seemed lifeless as they shoved him in the emergency car. "I called them over here immediately when he collapsed."

Toshi didn't respond, and when his mother tried to grab his hand, Toshi pulled away. "I-, I have to go." Toshi said, tears in his eyes. He ran off the porch towards his car. His mother yelled after him, but Toshi didn't care. He started his car, his eyes red and his cheeks wet. He slammed the gas and went as fast as possible away from his parents' house. He rushed back to his apartment, his thoughts aflame.

 _How could this happen! I didn't do anything wrong! Why did this happen!_ He pulled into the driveway, and rushed inside. He ran past the front office, up the stairs, still clearly upset. He went into his apartment, furious at nothing and everything. He didn't know what else to do, but grab his Amusphere. He plugged it into the wall and lay down on his bed. Hopefully, his tears would dry off while he was in the game.

"Link start!" Toshi ordered. Color filled his vision as he logged into the Amusphere. He watched uncaring as the Amusphere went down the list of transceiver's items.

 **Smell and Audio: Online**

Toshi ignored the visual display, trying to remember the voice of his father instead.

 **Taste and Touch: Online**

Toshi imagined his father standing there, arms open. So close to him, but now out of reach.

 **Sight: Online**

 _Will I ever see my father again?_

Toshiyan spawned in the Impish capitol. He charged through the crowds, anger enveloping his atmosphere. As soon as he exited the city, he sprinted out of the mountain and took flight. He flew as fast as he could to the nearest monster infested forest.

He landed harshly on the ground, daggers unsheathed. Eyes full of fury, he lunged at the nearest monster. He slashed at them in a precise angular pattern.

 _Right when my life was going well, it all just had to go downhill. Why? Why does all of this happen to me? Is it impossible for me to be happy?_

He slashed at the small monsters, easily overcoming them. He could feel tears forming again, blurring his vision. Regardless, he kept fighting.

 _Now, I'm in danger of losing one of the few people who cared about me._ Toshiyan then had another disconcerting thought. _Was I even a good son? I was so close to my parents for a long time. Then, I was forced to lie to them every single day. That's why I left their house, that's why I left other people. That's why even though I might have people who care about me now, they would hate me when they learned the truth._

Whether on accident or not, Toshiyan wandered into an open grove. Toshiyan immediately recognized the look of a terrain as a mini boss fight. Unfortunately, he was correct. Suddenly a large insect-like creature emerged from the forest ahead. It resembled a Praying Mantis, and it was titled The Insect King.

Toshiyan gripped his daggers, but he hesitated. He then unequipped his daggers and walked towards the boss completely empty handed.

"Come on!" Toshiyan exclaimed. "Let's see if you can get me."

The monster roared in response. It trudged forward, each leg the size of a small tree. It raised a long leg and stabbed at Toshiyan. He dodged, but it was sluggish. After another attack, Toshiyan was knocked backward.

" _You killed people."_ Poison Serpent's voice echoed in his head.

The Praying Mantis swatted him aside. Toshiyan's health began to drop into the yellow area.

" _Do you really believe that you could be forgiven? No one cares about you!"_ The Serpent continued.

Toshiyan evaded another strike, but he still wasn't fast enough. His health dropped even lower.

" _Why are you even here? You don't deserve to be alive. Not after what you've done! You deserve to join the others who you killed!"_ Serpent hissed.

Toshiyan stopped trying, slumping to his knees. The Praying Mantis trudged forward, raising one it's legs to make the final blow

 _Perhaps that would be best._ Toshiyan thought, utterly defeated.

An arrow shot from overhead, slamming into the giant insect. Both the Praying Mantis and Toshiyan looked to see who was responsible. Toshiyan immediately recognized the archer as Sinon. She looked directly at Toshiyan.

"Toshi, Get up and fight!" she ordered. Toshiyan looked stunned for a second. He finally nodded, out of the daze he was in. He quickly equipped his daggers and he rushed at the monster.

The distracted insect was too slow to react as Toshiyan slashed at its exoskeleton. The monster kept having to switch its attention between the archer and the assassin. Finally the paralysis began to take its toll on the large monster. It became even less mobile, allowing Toshiyan the opportunity he needed to launch his final blow.

He flew on top of the Praying Mantis. The insect tried to shake him off, but it was not successful. Toshiyan began to slice the frail connections of the Praying Mantis's legs. Sinon knocked her arrow, firing a straight arc toward the monster. Almost on impact, the Insect King disappeared, and Toshiyan fell to the ground. He looked up at the archer who helped him beat the monster, with anything but a pleased expression.

"I didn't need your help." He said bitterly.

Sinon looked at him, frowning. "You're welcome." she replied.

"How did you even find me?" Toshiyan inquired harshly.

Sinon opened her menu, pointing to her friend list. "I was diving, and I wanted to meet up with you. So, I tracked and found you, and just in time too." she responded calmly.

Toshiyan was tempted to respond, but stopped himself before he could do so. _She was only trying to help, I shouldn't be mad._ Toshiyan sighed. "Thank you Sinon, I'll go now." he said, beginning to walk away.

"Actually, I'm not done with you yet." Sinon interjected. "Toshi, ever since you've come into our group, I knew something was up. That first day, Asuna tells us that she brought a visitor that would the boss fight with us, and to be extra nice to him."

Toshiyan stopped. He remembered that first time they all did a boss fight together against Spider Lord Nemron. He never knew why Asuna went into the building before he did.

"What are you getting at?"

"After that, I hear from Liz and Silica about you. Liz was open about what you did, but never really explained why you're so distant from people. Silica knows even less about you."

 _For good reason._

"The only people who have any idea who you are, are Kirito and Asuna. But whenever I ask them, they find some way to change the subject."

"Why do you care so much about my life, huh?" Toshiyan argued. Sinon paused, unsure how to reply. She looked almost, embarrassed, staring at the ground. "Was it true what you said, about Asuna telling you all to be nice to me?" Toshiyan continued.

"Toshi, I-"

"Is it true!?" Toshi demanded.

Sinon looked down again, and gave a small nod. A pit formed in Toshiyan's stomach. "So, the only reason that you or any of the others cared about me was because Asuna told you to."

"No Toshi, it's not like that." Sinon replied.

"Really? Because that's what it's beginning to look like. So everything, the boss fights, the parties, even our relationship, is based on the will of one who pities me?"

"Pities you?" Sinon questioned.

"You see Sinon, that's why I avoid people, because deep down, everyone only cares about themselves. There are even people like you who care about nothing at all!"

Sinon ignored the obvious jab, writing it off as part of the emotional outburst. "No, this goes deeper than that. You've avoided us since the beginning. I know there's something going on with you, and this," Sinon gestured to the area where the insect battle had occurred. "Just proves it. Why are you acting like this, why are you pushing all your friends away, why are you pushing me away?"

"Because I'll end up hurting you too!" Toshiyan exploded. "Because every single day, I have to live with what I've done. Are you sure that you want to know why?"

Sinon looked at him, puzzled. "What did you do that would force you to separate yourself emotionally like this?"

"Sinon, you were told that I became a very powerful swordsman in SAO, right?" Toshiyan asked. Sinon replied with a nod. "You were also told that my sister was killed, correct?"

Again, Sinon replied with another nod. "Yeah, and Silica told me that a member of Laughing Coffin killed her."

"She's right, but that wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for me." Toshi continued. "When I was in SAO, I was denied by the Knights of the Blood Oath. I instinctively joined a guild that hunted red players. It hurt me every day to think that I had to take the life of another human being, but I was able to do it under the assumption that they were Red players. Then, I find out from Kirito that all those 'Red Players' were actually Green players."

Sinon cringed slightly, trying to wrap her head around that feeling. The feeling of dread, anger, and deep sorrow.

"When I tried to leave, Laughing Coffin kidnapped my sister as collateral for me to continue working there. I tried to do good, and I reported where their base was immediately. Kirito looked me in the eyes, and promised me, he would help get Lyn back. Then when the time came, he didn't do it. So, I was forced to watch a member of Laughing Coffin kill my sister, right in front of me! In return, I killed the Red player in cold blood."

Sinon was almost speechless. Everything he was describing, it almost pained her to listen to it, but she kept her mouth shut. This is what she asked for.

Toshiyan was in tears now. "Now, I blame Kirito for my sister's death, because if I don't, I have to take responsibility for it myself. I learned that all I do is hurt people, and that's why I do it. I do it so that I don't hurt people like you, and I have to learn how to not hate myself. I killed 19 other green players, and hurt so many more with their deaths. I lost one of the only people who cared about me, and on top of that, I have to lie to my parents every day about how Lyn died."

Suddenly everything started to click. Why Toshi was distant, why he avoided them, why Kirito and Asuna didn't want to talk about what happened to him. His distance wasn't an act of hatred, it was an act of self-punishment. She would know, she did it for a long time.

"Toshi, I know how you feel." she added.

"No you don't!" Toshiyan retorted. "You don't know what it's like, to have killed people. You don't know what's it's like to have lost a loved one. You don't know what's it's like to have to try everyday, to not hate yourself. You don't know what it's like to think that maybe, being in this group will help you feel better about yourself; even though you know for a fact, you can never be happy, not after what I've done." Toshiyan just collapsed to his knees after this, tears still falling. "It was foolish of me to think that I could ever be happy, or someone as perfect as you could love someone as horrible as me."

Sinon fell into silence. Toshi had just outrightly admitted everything, and she felt loss at words. She always felt so sure, but with Toshi, it was different. She had full understanding, but no idea what to do in response. It irked, and intrigued her at the same time. She tried to formulate a plan inside her head, but nothing came. So, she fell back to what she wasn't sure of, but figured that now was the time to use them. She looked down into her emotions, and found exactly what to do.

"Just leave Sinon, I understand that you hate me. Go tell the others if you wish, and you'll never have to see me ever again." Toshiyan commented.

Toshiyan listened for footsteps, almost expecting them. He didn't hear any at first, but then he was able to make them out. However, contrary to what he had expected, the footsteps were coming closer instead of further away. When he could tell she was just inches away from him, she did something he didn't expect, but should have. She lifted him up, and she slapped him. Hard. A red mark appeared on his face as he fell to the ground. It had hurt a lot more than Toshiyan thought, even doing some small amount of damage. He immediately shot up from the ground.

"Hey, what was that for?" Toshiyan retorted.

"That's for saying that no one cares about you. Look around you Toshi, you're in a friend group who really cares about you, and who really does value you as a friend."

"Yeah, how do I know that you aren't just saying that because Asuna told you to?" Toshiyan argued.

She took a few steps closer. "Because Asuna can't make me do this." She grabbed him by the collar, pulling him down to where her face was lined up with his. His face only inches away from hers.

"What are you-"

Sinon didn't let him finish. She pulled him into a kiss, a kiss that completely shocked Toshi. He had expected her to leave, to never want to see him again. Instead, he got this. He felt something again, something he had felt a few times now. This time however, he felt the peace he had felt, as well as joy. All the pain he felt just moments before had melted away. He kissed her back, knowing that this was right. Knowing that someone cared for him like this was, amazing to say the least.

When they pulled away, Sinon let out a sigh. "That was proof that I do care about you."

Toshiyan stood unmoving, still. He was able to snap out of his stupor, and he noticed a warm feeling in his chest, another thing he never noticed before. "I-I, um, y-you-"

"Toshi, I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I wasn't really honest with you either. I suppose that because you told me why you are how you are, I need to explain what happened to me, because I really do know how you feel."

"Wait, what would you know about that? I mean, you're you! You are by far one of the nicest people I know. A little distant maybe, but still one of the most amazing people I know. What could you possibly know about ever even thinking about taking another life?"

She smiled a little. "I, um, am glad you think that, but-". She looked down. "I have a little bit baggage myself. I told you my dad died when I was three right?"

Toshi nodded. "Yeah, and you said that your mom had a really hard time with it."

"Well, when I was a older, I became really overprotective of my mom. One day, I went to the post office with my mom. Then, another man came in, soaking wet, and demanded that he was given all of the money. When he waved a gun at my mother, I, um, bit him."

Toshiyan tried to imagine that. A little kid biting a robber, but he didn't say anything.

"Anyway, he dropped his gun. I ran to pick it up, and-" Sinon was getting quieter, but Toshi didn't need her to finish. He knew what happened next.

"You killed him." he finished.

Sinon had a forlorn look on her face. "Yeah, I did. All the kids in my school would call me a murderer. It got so bad that my mom and I moved away. On top of that, I was so terrified of guns that the very sight of them would make me throw up. I was like that right up until I met Kirito. He and his friends were very accepting, and I was able to recover. I still have a lot to work on though."

"I guess we both do." Toshi replied. "However," he continued, grabbing Sinon's hand. "I'm willing to try if you help me."

Sinon smiled back at him. "Yeah, me too."

"I'm sorry for yelling at you. You didn't deserve that." Toshi apologized.

"No, it's alright, I asked for it."

The two sat down, snuggling as the sun began to set, and the moon began to rise. The graphics in ALO were brilliant, and the two watched as the artificial stars began to rise. Both were content in eachother's arms, each one smiling.

"No more secrets Toshi?" Sinon asked.

"No more secrets." he replied.

* * *

 **There we go, there's the next chapter. I was really excited to get this one out there. I might still need some romance writing work to do. Anyway, I hoped you liked this chapter, next time, you'll actually get some plot, so don't go away. I hope you liked the chapter, until next time!**

 **Zippy**


	12. Chapter 11

***I'm putting armor on* Guys, I'm sorry in advance.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Toshi arrived back at his apartment holding some mail. He placed the mail on a table and collapsed on his bed. He reached for his phone on a small desk next to his. When he unlocked it, he was surprised when he got a rather urgent email from Asuna.

 **Guys, major problem. Look at the link that Shino shared with me. We're meeting at Liz's shop to talk about it at 6.**

Toshi tapped on the link, revealing that it was a news broadcast. Curiously, he tapped it and the news clip played.

" _Welcome back to News 66, where you get the zippiest news known to Japan. Coming up next, the reexamination of the Shinkawa case. Our reporter, Mei, is currently at the courthouse where the case was readdressed. Take it away."_

" _Thank you." Mei replied. "I'm here at Greenwater courthouse, where the Shinkawa case has been addressed. The Shinkawa family has gone to bat with the state on this matter, claiming that Kyouji's actions, were the result of pressure from his brother, Shouichi. Now, after a long legal battle, Kyouji Shinkawa has been released, with a minimum parole time. However, there's still more to come on the mental stability of Kyouji. Back to the studio."_

" _Thank you Mei. Coming after the break, the Amusphere 2.0 is coming out soon, which raises some valuable questions on the future of VR gaming; coming to you after the break."_

Toshi turned off his phone. Shino had mentioned something about the reexamination of Kyouji's case. However, Kyouji getting out with minimal parole, and after Shino's experience with visiting him? _This is a major problem._

Later, Toshiyan arrived at the Liz's shop, where the group was waiting. The group, with the exception of Klein, didn't waste time with unrelated chatter, they immediately started talking about the video.

"Sinon, you're positive he still isn't ready to leave jail." Asuna asked.

"Absolutely, I know that even after all this time, he has had very little psychological treatment. Kyouji told me most of it went to his brother. He isn't better yet!" Sinon replied.

"I can attest to that." Toshiyan agreed. "From what Sinon has told us, he still seems unstable to me."

Kirito nodded. "If Kyouji is still not fully well, then Sinon might be in danger." he commented. "We need to figure out how to best protect her from him."

Klein suddenly had an idea. "Hey, what if we were to take turns keeping an eye on Sinon? Then if Kyouji decides to pop in for a visit, we can call the cops and expose him for the crook he is."

"Good idea Klein." Liz agreed. "We'll fix up a schedule, we'll alternate keeping watch between the 6 of us."

"Guys, you don't need to keep watch over me." Sinon replied. "I don't want you guys to waste your time."

"I beg to differ," Toshi argued. "If you are in danger, we're going to make sure that you aren't hurt. No objections, right guys?" The group nodded in response.

"Besides," Leafa inserted. "I thought you liked hanging out with us."

"It's not that, I just-"

"Sinon, it's for your own good. It's the safer bet to make." Toshiyan argued.

There was silence in the shop, but eventually, Sinon nodded. "Thank you guys."

"Look Sinon, we might just be over exaggerating the situation, but we just don't want you to get hurt." Asuna said.

Sinon looked down, looking in deep thought. Toshi wanted to say something, but Kirito decided to address the group first.

"Alright, now we know what need to do, each of us will take turns keeping an eye on Sinon. Asuna and I will work something out. We'll get back to you as soon as possible."

The group disbanded, and the group left Liz's shop. Sinon walked out with Toshiyan when the meeting ended, but she still looked bothered.

"Hey, are you alright?" Toshiyan asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. It's just that I feel a little, I don't know, overwhelmed."

"Sinon, we're doing this for your own good. We don't want anything to happen to you." Toshiyan explained. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

She smiled in response. "Thank you, but I don't want you to get hurt either. If Kyouji was to escape, he could try and kill you. He doesn't like you or Kirito at all."

Toshiyan stopped Sinon and looked directly at her. "Sinon, I promise you that neither you nor I will get hurt."

"Really?" she asked.

"Absolutely,"

Sinon nodded. "I needed to hear that, but I can protect myself a little, so don't think that I'm going to go all damsel in distress on you."

Toshiyan frowned. "Dang it," he joked. "I was looking forward to being the prince on horseback."

Sinon rolled her eyes. "You're ridiculous."

"Hey, you know you love me."

She smiled. "Yeah, I guess I do."

Toshiyan held his arms out hoping to get a hug from her. She relented and the two embraced. He was always the happiest when he was with Sinon. However, not too far away, Liz and Silica stood observing the lovers. Silica had a look of longing, while Liz's face was full of disgust.

"Goodness, they're worse than Kirito and Asuna." Liz lamented.

"But you have to admit," Silica replied. "They're a cute couple."

"Yeah, but do they have to rub it in that much?"

"Well, I think that when you're in love. The only person that matters is the significant other."

 _Sinon, I will do all in my power to keep you safe. I will not let you come to harm, even if I go down trying to protect you, because I will not lose you. No matter what._

* * *

 _Approximately 1.5 years into SAO…_

Toshiyan was a wreck.

He was avoiding a lot of people, and he was sick of it. He had found that even killing red players would cause a green player like him to go orange as well. Toshi would always have to go into hiding for a couple of days after taking down a dangerous player. Even still, Toshiyan was still suffering from some doubts.

Ever since he joined the Skeleton Smashers, everything at first seemed alright. The first few targets looked very dangerous, and lethal. However, recently, Toshiyan was being sent on these missions with questionable targets. Not too long ago, he was sent after a professional cook, and later, a florist. These recent targets seemed, unthreatening at worst. He had been told what they did by Poison Serpent, but Toshiyan couldn't help but wonder anyway.

He also couldn't help but hate his job. He hated the prospect of taking another life. He had to drag himself to do it on every single assignment. He knew that they were bad people, he knew that they were murderers, so why did he feel so, terrible?

Toshiyan examined his menu again, he had gotten yet another assignment from Poison Serpent. He opened the message hesitantly, filled with dread. When he opened it, he was even more aghast.

 **Name: Kirito**

 **Dangerous: Extremely**

 **Kirito has been a thorn in our side since day one. Ever since discovering of our noble guild, he has openly attacked our agents and prevented us from eliminating our targets. He uses only one sword, and no shield, but do be warned that he is still highly skilled. Confronting him one on one is not recommended. However, an ambush should be able to take him down, especially with your paralysis. Contact me when the target has been eliminated.**

Toshiyan was puzzled. He knew Kirito! His sister knew Kirito, and so did Asuna! He knew for a fact that Kirito was not a Red player.

"This doesn't make any sense." Toshiyan mumbled. "Why would they specifically send me to target someone who is a green player."

Toshiyan thought about it long and hard. Was there a messup in the message transfer? This had to be a mistake.

Wait. No.

Toshiyan rejected the notion that crossed his mind. He couldn't believe that. Poison Serpent wouldn't send him Green players to kill. The point of this guild is to hunt Red players, not murder innocents. Toshiyan saw the crystals of the people he was assigned to kill, every single one of them was red. Poison Serpent couldn't be lying to him. Right?

Toshiyan paced across the floor. He was trying to figure out what went wrong, but no other explanation presented itself. Finally he came to a conclusion.

"I need to figure out what's going on here. I need to do some research of my own. I need to quit the guild temporarily."

Toshiyan thought about it for a little longer, realizing that temporarily wasn't long enough. "No, I need out forever. I can't do this anymore. Good cause or not, I can't."

He made up his mind. He was going to the base tomorrow to leave the guild.

The next day, Toshiyan arrived at the Skeleton Smasher's base. Contrary to his first visit, there were quite a few more people here now. He worked his way past the other members of the guild and tried to make his way to the leader's meeting room. When he arrived, he was greeted by none other than Poison Serpent.

"Hello Electric Assassin." he said cooly. "How may I help you?"

"I quit."

Serpent looked confused, almost like he didn't understand. "Come again? You said you were quitting?"

"Yeah, I don't want to be a part of this anymore."

The Serpent stood up. "Why, didn't you want to stand for our cause."

"I don't like Red players, you're right about that, but I need to some research on my own."

"Well, that's a shame," Poison Serpent murmured. "However, I'm afraid that I can't let you do that."

Poison Serpent had put himself in front of the exit, blocking Toshiyan from leaving. Toshiyan was getting more suspicious by the minute.

"Really, why not?" Toshiyan asked.

"Unfortunately, I am not allowed to let you leave. No one in our guild is allowed to leave."

Toshiyan was slowly reaching for his daggers. "I'm afraid that I'm going to be the exception to that rule."

Both swordsman glared at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. As the tension built, neither swordsman relented. However, the tension was broken by a third party.

"What is going on here?" a voice interrupted.

Both swordsmen looked to see the origin of the voice. The Poison Serpent immediately began to show nervousness, but Toshiyan didn't know who he was.

"Leader PoH, I didn't expect to see you here!" Serpent said, voice shaking.

"Why are you not allowing our member to leave the guild." PoH asked.

"Well, you know about how the guild works, no one can leave. It could risk the guild's exposure!" Serpent argued.

"I agree, I made that rule for a reason." PoH replied. "However, I say, we do need to let Toshiyan go."

"What! Why?" Serpent inquired harshly.

"Because we have no need to keep him here. He has already done much to help our cause, and if he desires to leave, he should be allowed to do so. Do you have any objections?" PoH asked the Poison Serpent.

The Serpent glared at Toshiyan again, but finally moved away from the exit. Toshiyan smiled, releasing his daggers and making his way to the exit.

"One more thing," PoH interrupted. Toshiyan spun around, turning to face the one addressing him.

"What?"

"I do believe that you will come back, I almost know if for a fact."

Toshiyan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I'm not so sure about that." he said, staring back at Poison serpent. Finally, Toshiyan turned and left the room.

Almost immediately after Toshiyan left, Poison Serpent turned incredulously to PoH.

"You and I both know that he can't reveal the location of our base. Why did you let him leave alive!?"

PoH turned away, walking back into the dark room from whence he came. "We still have work for him to do."

* * *

Kirito's passy made good on their schedule. After Kyouji's minimal parole was completed, the group spent a lot of time with each other. The girls would go on certain outings together, or the group would visit a monument of some sort. When Toshi would take his turn, he would take Shino out on a date. However, a week passed, and still nothing happened. Toshi took as a good sign, but still was a little suspicious.

He had taken Shino on another date, the two went to see a movie, and were about to get dinner. Toshi was driving Shino to the restaurant that he had chosen when they ran into a problem.

"Are you going to tell me where we're going?" Shino asked.

"Not yet, but we'll be there soon." Toshi answered.

She sighed. "You know, keeping secrets is not the best move in a relationship."

"Oh, you're playing that card now?"

"Yeah I'm playing that card, the suspense is killing me."

"Fine, to quell your lack of patience, ask me a question about you."

"Really, any question?"

"Sure,"

"Fine, how are your parents?

Toshi hesitated. _Should I tell her about dad?_ However, he remembered one of the promises he made to Shino. _No more secrets._

"My dad recently had to go to the hospital."

Shino looked concerned. "What happened?"

"He, um, had a stroke. He's in a coma right now, and the doctors don't know when he'll wake up."

"I'm sorry, that must be hard."

Toshi smiled. "Thanks," he replied. Finally, Toshi and Shino arrived at the restaurant, but contrary to what Toshi had expected, the restaurant looked dark. Toshi got out of his car to get a closer look. Unfortunately, a sign confirmed his suspicions true.

"What is it?" Shino asked.

"The restaurant is closed." he replied, walking towards his car. When he got inside, Toshi had nothing short of a look of disappointment on his face. "Dang it, I made a reservation today, and they conveniently close the restaurant today."

Shino smiled. "It's alright, really."

"Sorry, I don't want to sound sour, but I really did want to take you here. I don't know what to do now."

"Don't worry, we can go to my place and order something."

"Alright, but I'll need directions."

Shine guided the car along the road. As she told Toshi where to go, the road became more barren, almost deserted. When they arrived at Shino's apartment, Toshi was really surprised. Shino lived in what appeared to be an oversized box, in the middle of nowhere, miles away from civilization. _I realize that now why we need to watch her house. She has no protection out here._

"This is it." Shino confirmed, unbuckling her seat belt.

"All right," he replied. When he turned off his car, Toshi took a look at his phone to check the time. "It's about 10, so Asuna will be here here soon."

"Oh, um, alright." Shino replied. Toshi noticed that Shino seemed a little down when she said this. However, she got out of the car before he could ask what was wrong. When she unlocked her apartment, they both stepped inside. "Do you want anything?"

"Um, you wouldn't happen to have some lemonade, would you?"

"No, but I can make some."

"Wait, don't make some just for me." he objected.

"It's fine, I want to."

Toshi was about to object even further, but decided against it. He took a seat at a little table while she worked on the beverage, In the meantime, Toshi examined the little space the apartment had. He could see the entire apartment from where he stood. He was a little saddened to find that Shino lived in a place like this.

 _She deserves better than this. Then again, she deserves better than me._

"Toshi," Shino commented.

He snapped out of his train of thought. "Yeah,"

"Do you feel, um, obligated to spend time with me?"

"What?" Toshi replied, shocked at the comment. "Where did that come from?"

"It's just that, you and the others have been spending a lot of time with me, mostly because of Kyouji. But, in the meantime, I've just thought that you do it because you have to."

"Shino," Toshi said, walking toward her. "We spent the time with you to protect you, and I spent the time with you to be with you."

"I love to be around you too, but I suppose that I'm, I don't know afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

"Afraid of losing you. Toshi, you one of the best things that has ever happened to me, and I really do care about you. I just don't want you to feel forced to be with me."

Toshi frowned. "Look Shino, I consider myself to be extremely lucky that someone like you could even tolerate me, knowing of my past too. I still don't know if I'm crazy and imagining someone as perfect as you would like someone like me."

Shino smiled at that comment. Toshi always had a warm feeling when he made her smile. It made him feel as if he was doing something right. He put his arms around Shino, pulling her towards him to emphasize his point.

"Look Shino, you are one of the greatest people I've ever had the privilege to meet. I would never feel like I had to be with you. I'll do my best to love and protect you. And if anyone tries to hurt you, Kyouji included, I'll-"

Toshi was interrupted by a knocking sound from the front of Shino's apartment. He let go of Shino and walked towards the closed door, looking through the peephole. On the other side of the door was a man dressed entirely in blue holding a package.

"Who is it?" Shino asked.

"It's a package, did you order anything?"

"Yeah, I ordered the new Amusphere, I forgot that it was coming today." she replied.

Toshi relaxed, and began to unlock the door. He opened it slowly, trying to get a good look at the man's face.

"Hey sir, can you sign this for me?" The package man asked, handing him a clipboard. Toshi reluctantly grabbed the board from the opposite person, signing his name on the bottom. After giving the board back, the package man handed Toshi the box. The first thing he noticed was the fact that the box was light. _Too light._

Toshi had no time to react as the package man shot his hand forward. Toshi first thought that the pain he felt in his gut was a knife. The pain he felt was in a small area. However, as soon as the pain was there, Toshi began to feel the pull of gravity more strongly. He dropped the empty box and clutched his gut.

"Toshi!" Shino cried.

The package man looked at Toshi in amusement. "That's him? Funny, I imagined him a little more flattering." He removed his hat, revealing his dirty blonde hair that covered part of his face.

Shino glared at the intruder. "Kyouji! What did you do!"

"Oh, I'm freeing him from his existence. That syringe will kill him soon, but not soon enough to watch me finish."

Shino shot around, opening a drawer of her closet. From it, she removed a gun, pointing it at Kyouji. "You have 30 seconds to-"

"Leave? And leave your friend to die? You don't want that, so, I have an offer for you." Kyouji pulled out another syringe, one that revealed an orange liquid. "This my love, is the antidote for the toxin his blood. It will cure him, but in order for him to receive it, I suggest that you give me that gun.

Toshi slumped to the ground. It was getting harder to move and to breathe. He found it too painful to try and speak. He wanted desperately to warn her not to do it. _Shino, you can't, don't put the gun down. Let me die, just don't let him get to you!_

Shino looked back and forth between the antidote, and Toshi. She glared at Kyouji again, but reluctantly gave the weapon to the intruder.

"Thank you my dear." he replied. He then let go of the antidote and let it fall to the ground. It shattered on impact, spilling the tiny antidote on a small amount of the wooden floor.

"NO!" she exclaimed.

"Look, I know that it hurts now, but it's for your own good. Now, let's go, my time is limited, and I have some things to do."

Shino began to cry, Toshi could make some out on his own blurry vision. However, his eyesight was getting worse by the second, until he finally just could only see blurry outlines. He could see Kyouji's personage lead Shino away by gunpoint.

Toshi, was powerless, once again unable to do anything to protect the ones he cared about. It was exactly like it was in Sword Art Online. Helpless. Weak. Useless. He watched as another villain lead someone he loved away, and he felt as if the pain of death would be better than what he was feeling right now.

 _I've failed again._

* * *

 **Look, guys. I'm sorry, I know that I shouldn't stop here, but then how would I keep your interest. You should, I don't know, leave a review and maybe I'll get the next chapter out. *Hint* *Hint***

 **Zippy**


	13. Chapter 12

**I suppose I can't have you hang there forever. I hope you like this chapter!**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Toshi's head felt like someone just dropped an anvil on it. He forced his eyes open, where he found that not only was his worried mother there, but also Kirito and his friends. Every single one looked really worried.

"He's awake!" Silica said, relieved.

Toshi examined his surroundings. He looked to see that not only was he in a hospital bed, but he was also had a few needles in him. By the looks of everything, he wasn't just out for a few hours.

"How long was I out?" Toshi asked.

"Two days," his mother answered. "When your friends told me, I came over as soon as I could."

Toshi's memories were beginning to come back now. The date, going to Shino's; then Kyouji was there. Toshi then began to panic.

"Where's Shino?!" he said urgently.

Most everyone looked down silently, until finally Asuna spoke up.

"When I found you, Shino was gone." she said.

Toshi looked down, so many thoughts going through his head. _I had one job. All I had to do was protect Shino, and I couldn't even do that!_

"I-," Toshi said, trying to formulate a good thing to say.

"Toshi it wasn't your fault-"

"All I had to do was make sure that Shino was safe." Toshi interjected.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the already open door. Everyone turned to see who was there; a man with a white coat. He walked in with a clipboard, but he almost looked a little puzzled.

"What's the news?" Toshi asked.

The doctor looked at the patient with a smile. "Hello Mr. Yanada, glad to see you're up."

"Is there anything serious?" Toshi's mother asked.

"Serious?" Toshi interrupted. "What do you mean?"

"Well, um, when we found you, we identified the toxin in your blood."

"And?"

"Toshi, you should be dead right now." the doctor stated. He let that sit for a moment, and then looked back at his clipboard. "When we tested you, we found that whatever toxin was in you, the concentration of it wasn't very high. The one that poisoned you gave you only a quarter of what a lethal dose would be."

"Isn't that good?"

"Well, yes and no. The toxin still probably would have killed you, or at least caused some brain damage, just at a slower rate. But, according to these tests, you're fine."

"So, I'm free to go?" Toshi asked.

"Yeah," the doctor replied. "But if you notice anything strange, be sure to come back."

"Thank you doctor." Toshi replied.

The doctor then turned to face Toshi's mother. "Now, Mrs. Yanada, I have some news about your father that you might find- interesting."

She nodded. "Yes?"

"Follow me, and I'll explain."

When Toshi's mom left, all of the focus went to Toshi. He sat upright, and began to remove hospital items attached to him.

"Toshi, what are you doing?" Asuna asked, shocked.

"I'm going after Shino."

"But you can't do it right now." Liz interrupted. "You're not strong enough."

"I'm fine," he said, yanking a tube out of his arm. It hurt more than he cared to admit, but he ignored it and got out of the bed. "Look, I need help though. Does anyone have any ideas on where she could be."

Everyone was silent again. Toshi tried to meet the eyes of everyone in the room, all but one. It made it slightly ironic when the one that he didn't look at spoke.

"I have an idea," Kazuto interjected. "But it might be a bit of a long shot."

Toshi didn't know how to react. _Come on, of all the people here, the only one that can help me is Kazuto!?_

"What did you have in mind?" Toshi asked.

"There's one place I know of that could at least give us a clue on where she might be."

"Great, let's go." Toshi said, walking out the door.

"Wait, Kazuto." Asuna interrupted.

Kazuto immediately stopped to give her his attention. "Yeah?"

"I-" She paused, almost unsure what to say next. Toshi could tell that she was really trying to calculate the response. "I want you to be safe. Come back, alright."

"I will," Kazuto replied. He then switched his attention to Toshi. "Let's go."

When the two left the room, Toshi wasn't sure where to start. "Kazuto, where do we start?"

"You have your car right?"

"Um, yeah. Where do we need to go?"

"I have only one idea, but it's a long shot to say the least.

Toshi smiled. "Well, it's a good day to have those, considering we're going after an archer."

Toshi saw Kazuto physically cringe at the pun. "Please, don't ever do that again."

"Okay," Toshi replied, having a strange sense of deja vu.

* * *

Toshiyan hated being Orange. He had been kicked out of countless inns and taverns. He was forced to stay under a bridge for the night. Luckily, he had found a spot that was relatively warm, and was the best he could do. He tried to quiet his mind, but the thought about what happened was still on his mind.

"Did I overreact?" he asked himself. "I wasn't making the wrong decision was I?"

He then analyzed the facts. He was assigned less and less dangerous looking people, that was the first thing that was suspicious. Second, the incident that had happened in the base a couple of days ago was strange to say the least.

"But, I saw them, they were Red players." he said in thought. "Every single one of them, were dangerous because of that detail. Then," As Toshi thought about it, he realized that this was the heart of his problem.

"Then, why does it still feel wrong?"

Toshi's struggle was interrupted by a message that was delivered to him. When he opened his menu, he was shocked that the message was from Poison Serpent. Toshi was almost scared to open the message, wondering what it would say. Would it tell him another assignment like he had never left the guild, or would it say something worse. Finally, he brought himself to open the message.

 **Subject: You thought you could leave?**

 **Toshiyan, I thought you were better than this. You left our noble cause, just because you had a moment of sympathy? THESE ARE RED PLAYERS! Did you not see the crystals? We couldn't lie to you even if we could.**

 **So, to improve your resolve, we've tried something else…**

 **We need you to kill Kirito, by whatever means. Obviously asking isn't working for you, so we've improved our methods. We've apprehended your sister, Lyn. Let me assure you, I had no desire to do this, but you've forced my hand.**

 **Our statement: Kill Kirito, or we kill her…**

 **I hope you make the right decision.**

Toshi came to the conclusion that these people were INSANE at least. Threatening to kill Lyn! That was just uncalled for! Toshi closed the message, clenching his fists angrily.

"They better not hurt her," he threatened quietly. Then, a glimmer of hope came to mind. "Were they bluffing?"

There was only one way to find out. He opened his menu again, and looked at his messages. He opened the chat with Asuna, and began to type.

 **Asuna, has Lyn checked in with your guild recently?**

When he sent the message, he waited patiently. It wasn't that late, but he began to worry if she would see the message. Finally, he relieved when he saw that the message was read, and awaited to see what Asuna replied.

 **No, she hasn't checked in with the guild recently. Why?**

Toshi didn't respond. It wasn't that he didn't want to respond, it's that he couldn't. He fell back, coming to the realization that what Poison Serpent was saying was true. He felt tears starting to form. He was alone. There was nothing he could do. If he rebelled, they would kill Lyn. If he did what they said, then he would continue to be killing himself mentally.

He was torn, he didn't know what to do. He opened up the message with Poison Serpent. Wondering how to respond. Finally, he had an idea, but it was risky. However, if it worked, then he could get Lyn, and stop killing. He began to type a response.

 **I will confront Kirito…**

* * *

Kirito gave directions to Toshi as they navigated the long road. Toshi still had no idea where they were going, but Kazuto looked like he had a plan.

"Where are we going exactly?" Toshi asked.

"We're going to the prison." Kazuto replied.

"Wait, what?" Toshi asked. "Kazuto, Kyouji isn't going to be at the prison."

"I know, but someone there might be able to help us."

"Who?"

"If I told you, you wouldn't like it."

"Fine," Toshi stated.

As the two drove, Toshi could make out a building along the tree-lined road. It wasn't very tall, and it was lined with a barbed wire fence. When Toshi pulled up to the gate, they were stopped by a guard in a station.

"What do you want?" the guard asked.

"We want to make a visit to a prisoner."

"Really, do you have an appointment?"

Both Kazuto and Toshi looked very concerned. They didn't know that you had to make an appointment. Toshi looked down.

"Sorry, but we don't have an appointment." Toshi mumbled.

"That's alright, you don't need to make an appointment. I'm just trolling you." the guard said, smiling. "Just be done by 6, and you'll do fine."

"Thank you," Kazuto said from the passenger seat.

The gate opened and Toshi drove his car into the parking lot. When he parked, the two got out of his car and Kazuto led Toshi into the prison. Kazuto spoke with the receptionist while Toshi gazed into the prison yard. There were a few prisoner wandering the yard. Some were playing basketball, others were talking. Toshi had to remind himself why they were there. _All of these people are here for a reason. These people are criminals._ However, the more Toshi thought about it, the more distraught he became. _Do I belong here? Along with them?_

"Toshi," Kazuto interrupted. Toshi spun around.

"Yeah?"

"We get to meet him, let's go."

"Right," Toshi replied, taking one more glance of the prison yard before following.

A guard led Toshi and Kazuto along the prison corridor, towards the visiting rooms. When they arrived, Toshi saw that on the other edge of a glass wall was a man that looked almost like Kyouji. The only noticeable differences was his face, and his height. He still shared his brother's light hair, and similar build. The other man studied him for a moment, almost like he recognized Toshi.

Kazuto picked up a phone, and the prisoner did the same. "Are you Shouichi?" Kazuto asked.

The other man nodded from across the glass. "Indeed, you must be Kirito."

Kazuto looked at Shouichi with shock. "How did-"

"I recognized you from your avatar," Shouichi said. "And I recognize Toshiyan as well,"

"What did he say?" Toshi asked.

Kazuto turned to answer. "He says he recognizes you."

"How?" Toshi commented.

"You worked for Laughing Coffin, remember?" Kazuto answered.

Toshi paled. _How does he know about that?_

"Of course we never met, but I was one of the leaders of Laughing Coffin." Shouichi continued. "However, I think you have a purpose for being here. How may I help you?"

Toshi clenched his fists. _Why did Kazuto bring me here, how can this murderer help us? He's no better than Kyouji!_

"We came to talk to you," Kazuto answered. "It's about your brother."

Shouichi's relatively positive look diminished. He slumped in his chair, and looked visibly stressed. "Oh no, what did he do?" he asked, concerned.

Toshi snatched the phone, putting it to where they both could hear. "He kidnapped a girl by the name of Shino." Toshi said.

Shouichi nodded. "I've heard of her. Kyouji mentioned her a couple of times; 'she was the one' or something like that."

"Do you know where she is?" Toshi inquired.

Shouichi thought for a moment. He looked almost, forlorn as he thought, then nodded his head.

"I have a guess, or maybe somewhere he would keep her." Shouichi replied.

Both Toshi and Kazuto lit up. "Well, where is it?" they said, almost in unison.

"In Gun Gale Online, there was a place that we manufactured to be like a prison. If we gave a rigged NerveGear to someone, and kept them there, it would act as a hold to keep them from escaping."

 _Still not answering the question._ "And that place is?" Toshi asked impatiently.

"It's in our base, just outside of the main city where you spawn. Look for the Krankenhaus Inn, then find the passage underneath the inn to the place where our makeshift prison is. That's the one place where I can guess she might be."

Toshi was taking notes on his phone, and was very happy as he finished typing. "Thank you, for your help."

Toshi was about to leave along with Kazuto, but before Toshi could put the phone back, the prisoner shook his head, gesturing for Toshi to continue listening. "Yeah," Toshi said, pulling the phone back up to his ear.

"I want to talk to you," Shouichi replied.

Toshi wasn't sure how to react. _What does he want to say?_

"What is it?" Kazuto asked.

Toshi sighed. "He wants to talk to just me."

Kazuto shrugged. "Alright, but hurry."

When Kazuto left, Toshi pulled up the phone again. "What is it."

Shouichi sighed. "I don't even know where to begin. I've been reflecting on what I've done recently, and you keep popping up over and over again."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I was one of the people that forced you into staying in our guild. Not to mention threaten you with your sister's life in order for you to kill the man that was just here."

 _Yeah, it was messed up._ "What's your point?"

"My point is," Shouichi continued. "I want to say that I'm sorry."

Toshi was shocked. He never imagined that a leader of Laughing Coffin would be apologising to him. He wasn't sure how to react.

"I-"

"I know, why should you forgive someone like me. I did everything that I did in full knowledge, whereas you, we had to deceive. Someone like me doesn't deserve a second chance."

Toshi wasn't sure if he was hearing this right. _He's not the only one who thinks that._ "Well, from what I can tell, you really are trying to help us. Why?"

Shouichi leaned back in his chair. "Well, I've had a lot of time to think. Not to mention that my parents got me a really good therapist. However, no amount of money or mind changing is going to get me out here. I realize that, and I accept it, which is why I want to make things right with as many people as I can."

Toshi nodded, realizing just how far this man had come. He smiled. "Shouichi, I've never met someone more deserving of forgiveness than you. I forgive you."

Toshi could see the change that overtook Shouichi. The prisoner sighed with relief, a smile on his face. "Thank you Toshiyan, you have no idea how much this helps."

"You're welcome," Toshi replied.

"One more thing,"

"Sure,"

"I want you to bring my brother back." Shouichi stated. "He needs the help I've already gotten. I want him to feel this peace that I have now, something that I never experienced doing what he's doing."

Toshi thought about that. He never really got that far, it was difficult to think about what Kyouji would be like if he made a 180 like his brother, but he liked that idea better than what he was doing now. "I'll do my best."

"Thank you, for everything."

"You're welcome." he finished.

Toshi walked out of the room when he hung up. Kazuto was waiting for him just outside. Toshi didn't know why, but he felt, good. He felt a warm feeling all around him, and it made him forget the pain again.

"What was that about?" Kazuto asked.

"Nothing," Toshi replied. "We need to get to that place in Gun Gale Online. I need to transfer my stats, but that's it. Do you have an avatar there?"

"Um, yeah." Kazuto replied. "I do, and it'll work for why we're there."

"Then let's hurry."

* * *

 **Well what do you know, Toshi and Kazuto have a good chance on finding Shino now. Also with Shouichi situation in the background. I'm back, and this story is almost done. Be sure to leave a review on how I did, I'm still taking feedback. Until next time!**

 **Zippy**


	14. Chapter 13

**Well, I'm really excited about this chapter. Also, merry Christmas time everyone.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Toshi drove as fast as he could to his home. He unlocked the door to his apartment, and hurried inside. He had dropped Kazuto off at his house so that they could log into GGO. Toshi went to his computer, and began to download the game. Luckily for him, his stats were able to transfer from Alfheim, all he had to do was download the game and connect the Amusphere to it.

While the game was downloading, Toshi looked up all that he could on the game. He pulled up maps and other information he could. When he specifically looked up the Krankenhaus inn in GGO, he was surprised by what he saw. There was only one, and confirming what Shouichi said, it was just a few miles outside of the city.

Finally, the download was complete. Toshi connected the Amusphere to his computer and lay back on his bed. He started up the device, which hummed to life. He took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

"Link start!"

Immediately, color filled his vision, zooming past him as if he was being thrust into the virtual world. The system checklist checked off his senses. Then an alert appeared on his sight.

" **Transfer stats to foreign title?"**

"Yes." he stated in reply.

The loading screen came and went with very little time lost. Finally, a welcome screen appeared. **"Welcome to Gun Gale Online!"** the screen read. He was enveloped in light, and was teleported away. He arrived in a teleporter, in the middle of a large city.

There was only one way to describe the city: Steampunk. Everything looked mechanized, even the outfits of passerbys. Even his starting armor was different, which led to his next discovery he initially overlooked. _I don't have my daggers now._

He opened his menu to his character icon. He had his stats, however, the only stat that had carried was his Agility! Which broke down into his two main skills of Speed and Acrobatics.

 _I am not a circus animal! Why do they have acrobatics?!_

Luckily, his character looked surprisingly normal. Actually, it looked a lot like he did in real life. Dark hair, and brown eyes, along with his lighter complexion were all carried into the game. The clothing matched the futuristic feel, but he felt like he was in the future somehow.

He took some steps out of the teleporter pod. There were some shady characters hovering around him that paid very little attention to him, but made him feel uncomfortable. However, he was told to stay at the spawn point by Kazuto. He stood as close to the street as possible, in case he needed a short getaway.

 _Why does this game feel so, sketchy?_

"Toshiyan?" someone asked. Toshiyan turned to face who was talking to him. It was a girl, who looked to be just younger than he was. So many alarms were blaring in his head, but his expression remained calm.

"Sorry madame, but I don't know who you are." Toshi said, almost indifferently.

"Toshi! It's me!" the other character replied harshly.

When Toshi took another look at this character, he finally realized what he did wrong. This 'girl's' hair was long, which was what confused him at first. However, that face, he couldn't forget that. He paled when he realized who he was talking to.

"Kirito?" Toshiyan replied. "Is that you?"

"Yes it's me!" he said, sounding slightly offended.

"Oh," Toshiyan realized. "Wait, why do you look like a-"

"It doesn't matter!" Kirito interrupted. He took a deep breath, relaxing himself. "Sorry, it's just that everyone thinks that I'm a girl in this game."

Toshiyan smiled. "Does Asuna know?"

He nodded. "Yeah,"

Toshiyan just burst out laughing. The great and mighty swordsman Kirito, conqueror of Aincrad, wielder of Excalibur. Now, he's a sissy androgynous gunner. Kirito looked slightly annoyed.

"Are you done?" he asked.

Toshi relaxed himself. "Yeah, I'm done."

"Did you find out anything?"

"Yeah, I looked up the Krankenhaus while the game was downloading. It's in the southern part of the city."

"We better get going then." Kirito urged.

Toshi was about to follow, until he realized a rather large problem. "Wait, I need weapons."

Kirito stopped, putting his hand on his chin. "Yeah, good point."

"Where can I get cash fast? Is there a bank I could go to?"

Suddenly Kirito realized the solution. "No, I have a better idea, but we still have to go fast."

"Then what are we standing around here for?" Toshi asked.

"This way," Kirito said, pointing down the street. The two hurried down the road, pushing by some people. Kirito made a sharp turn into the left, making his way towards a building with large neon lights. Toshiyan followed him carefully into the illuminated building, and almost cringed when he came inside.

Now, Toshi had always been told by his parents to avoid places like this. Casinos were a waste of money, and in a game where money is real in the game and real life, it was the same principle. He was beginning to doubt Kirito, more so than before.

"Kirito, why are we in a casino? We're not here to gamble."

"Actually, yes we are."

Toshi stared dumbfounded at Kirito. _It's official, Kirito has lost it._

"Follow me," Kirito said. Toshiyan followed him into another room of the casino. The two stared at an entire column of a casino game called **Untouchable!** It looked like a long, straight path that led up to a robotic cowboy. There were a lot of credits lined up in each station, but Toshiyan still looked kind of confused.

"Kirito, we don't have time to gamble for lucrative amounts of money we don't need!"

"Toshi, you have no idea how expensive weapons here are. I have an idea for your weapons, but they're really expensive. So do me a favor, and stop questioning me please!"

Kirito spoke softly, but with much force. Toshi was about to argue, but kept his mouth shut. _Fine, I need Kirito to teach me, so that I can be done with him for now._

"Fine, what do I need to do."

Kirito smiled. "Let's look, shall we?"

They walked towards one of the game stations. One of the bystanders had put in some credits and was about to start. When the timer hit zero, the player shot forward. The robotic cowboy pulled out his gun and prepared to shoot. The player suddenly stopped, and stood in a funny position, which confused Toshi again.

"Why did he-"

The question was answered before he could finish. Bullets whizzed right past him, and then the player kept running.

"Do you get it now?"

"Kind of, he can tell where the bullets are coming from, right?" Toshi asked.

"Exactly," Kirito confirmed. "For you, it will look like several red lines that show where the bullets will be."

Toshiyan and Kirito continued to examine the player as he ran. The cowboy got progressively faster and more accurate as the player got closer. Toshi was able to notice this, despite looking at the game from the side.

"In case you didn't notice," Kirito added. "In the games attempt to make the cowboy more accurate, it actually made the game easier, because-"

"You can predict the prediction lines."

"Exactly."

Finally, the player was shot a by a quick energy gun that he didn't expect. That player set the record distance for the day, and others cheered him on his feat.

"I'd like to see anyone top that." one player commented.

Kirito looked at Toshi, who was grinning ear to ear. "You think you can do it?" Kirito asked.

Toshi stared at Kirito. "Kirito, anything you can do, I can do just as well."

"Then let's see it."

Toshi got in line, and inserted the proper credits. The cowboy shouted something obscure at him, but he didn't mind. Toshi knew that he could do this. When the timer hit zero, Toshiyan began to dash. When the cowboy shot at him, Toshiyan could see the red lines. He tried to dodge them, but suddenly, a force overtook him, moving his limbs for him. Toshi tried to fight it, and to no avail. Because of his immediate hesitation, one of the bullets hit him in the arm, and he lost.

Kirito frowned, and walked towards his comrade. "What happened?"

"I don't know," Toshiyan replied. "It's like my body was trying to move for me."

Kirito thought about it for a minute. He then had an idea. "Toshi, may I see your skill chart for a second?"

"Um, sure." Toshiyan replied. He opened his menu and showed his character profile to Kirito, who nodded in response.

"I see, you have speed, but you also have acrobatics too. It's the acrobatics skill that's throwing you off."

"What do you mean?"

"You see, Acrobatics can help you maneuver around certain objects with little to no problem, or it can help you dodge bullets. You resisted it, so it didn't work."

"What do I do?"

"Instead of resisting the skill, try to bend with it. Relax yourself instead of fighting it."

Toshiyan nodded. "Good to know."

He got back in line and prepared to start. Toshiyan could see the counter going down, but paid little heed.

 _I wonder why Kirito is trying so hard to help me._ Toshi thought.

Finally, the counter hit zero, and Toshi lunged forward again. The cowboy pulled his gun out, and shot at him again. Toshiyan relaxed his body, and bent with the Acrobatics skill. This time, the skill paid off, and Toshiyan came out of the onslaught unscathed.

"Keep going!" Kirito called. "Be sure to watch the lines!"

As Toshi got closer, cowboy changed it's patterns again, and shot faster and more accurately. However, Toshiyan quickly adapted, and began to make educated guesses on where the lines were going to be. For the most part, he was right. He got closer and closer until finally, he was just feet away. The cowboy pulled out a small energy blaster, and shot small quick shots all around him. Toshi rolled underneath the shots and tagged the cowboy on the foot.

The crowd was dead silent, the only sound that could be heard was from the cowboy as it shouted in disbelief. Gold sputtered out of the cabin and the number displaying the money in the game got smaller and smaller. Toshiyan smiled, and accepted the money. He jumped over the fence, and ran towards Kirito.

"I did it, now where do we need to go to buy my weapons?" Toshiyan asked.

"Alright, the store is on a floor just above us, we should check there for your equipment." Kirito replied.

"Good, let's get going."

* * *

 _Still about 1.5 years into SAO…_

Toshiyan waited in the trees for his target. He knew that Kirito usually walked this way to get to the town, and because Kirito was a solo player, getting him alone right now would be the easiest thing to do. Toshi was dead silent, but he wasn't sure why. According to his plan, he couldn't really hide from Kirito forever.

Suddenly, Toshiyan's detection skill came online. He could see someone coming from a distance. He used his Ring of Farsight to see who it was, and he saw a character dressed in black approach his location.

"Here he comes," Toshiyan murmured. "Time to try my plan."

Toshi didn't know how to go about it, but he needed a way to get Kirito's attention. The only thing that he could think of was to drop down and call out to him. He just needed to have the right timing.

However, Kirito stopped all of the sudden, looking around.

"Whoever's there, show yourself!"

Toshiyan knew he couldn't do it anymore. He dropped down from the tree, just in front of the Black Swordsman.

"Hello Kirito,"

Kirito looked confused. "Toshiyan? How did-" He stopped mid-sentence, and pulled out his dark sword. "Stay back!"

Toshi jumped back in response. He put his arms up innocently. "Kirito, what is it?"

"Your crystal," he muttered. "Why is it orange!"

Toshi was shocked. He examined his crystal by looking up, but to his relief, it was still green. However, he was more concerned about Kirito's crystal than his own. He could see clear as day, that Kirito's crystal was orange, not his.

"I could ask you the same thing," Toshiyan replied, unsheathing his daggers. "I should've known that the Black Swordsman had a double life!"

Kirito stopped, looking quite confused. Kirito knew for a fact that his crystal was green. Why did Toshiyan think that his crystal was orange. However, that aside, he had a more pressing matter to attend to. He was facing a fight he didn't know he could win. Toshiyan was a brother to his girlfriend's colleague. Not to mention, Toshiyan was also a close friend to Asuna as well. Now suddenly, he's trying to kill him?

"Toshiyan, take it easy."

"You know what Kirito, I'm really disappointed." Toshiyan said. "I really liked you. You were strong, and had good character, or so I thought. What's Asuna going to do when she finds out, huh?!"

There he was going on about the crystals again. Kirito had never attacked a green player intentionally in his life! What could this possibly accomplish. You can't change how a player views their screen.

Unless…

"Toshiyan, you've disappeared for the past few months, where were you exactly?" Kirito inquired.

"That's none of your concern, and don't try and change the subject." Toshi snapped back.

"Is it true that you joined another guild?"

"Kirito! I'm serious, this is no time for-"

"Toshiyan, I might be able to explain what happened, but I need you to answer me. Did you or did you not join another guild?"

Toshiyan paused, unsure how to react. "Um, yes."

"Did they give you an item of some sort?"

"No, they didn't-" Toshiyan paused mid-sentence. He was given an item, the Ring of Farsight. He then began to tremble slightly. "Yes, I was given a ring. Why?"

"Unequip it." Kirito stated.

Toshiyan hesitantly complied. He opened his menu, and clicked on his character slot. He tapped on the ring, telling the menu to unequip it.

Suddenly, the world changed. His vision decreased significantly, and he could see almost, clearer. As his line of sight decreased, so did his anxiety. He examined Kirito's crystal, and saw that it was indeed green.

"H-How is that p-possible."

Kirito looked down. "It's a trick that someone figured out. They can alter any weapon to change how a person views the game. Some use it as a prank, but as you can see, it was far from it.

"Wait, you mean-"

"Well that depends." Kirito continued. "You were sent to kill me, right?"

"Yeah, but there were others."

"Others?"

"I killed 18 other players, were they-"

Toshi didn't finish his sentence, Kirito's face said it all. Kirito's hung his face low, answering his question. Toshi froze. Toshi had never liked this whole business, not one bit. Now he knew why, and immediately regretted it. Toshi never wanted to kill anyone, and it took much to try to make him kill Red players. Now, everything he had done, hit him like a stab with his own daggers.

"I-It can't be true!" Toshiyan screamed, tears welling up.

"I'm so sorry," Kirito said in a low voice. "I really am, but we have a bigger problem. The only guild that I've seen do this is a guild named Laughing Coffin. They're a guild of Red players, only trying to kill innocent people. They knew they couldn't get you to join them, so they tricked you into killing 'criminals'. However, this can be good."

"In what dimension Kirito?! I'm a murderer!"

"No, you were tricked by them. You don't have to kill me for us both to gain from this."

"No, you don't understand, I have to kill you!"

"What do you mean?"

Toshiyan stared at the dirt below him. "They took Lyn, and they'll kill her if I don't kill you."

Kirito nodded. This just became much more difficult. If Laughing Coffin had taken Lyn, then it would be much more difficult to save her. Regardless, he had an idea that needed Toshiyan's help.

"Toshiyan, look at me." Kirito ordered.

Toshiyan looked at the Black Swordsman, tears staining his cheeks. "What?" he mumbled.

"I need you to tell me where Laughing Coffin's base is. I have friends who can help me get your sister back, but I can't help you unless you tell me where it is."

Toshiyan clenched his fists. He didn't want to have Lyn get hurt, but Kirito made a valid point. If they played their cards right, then he could get out of the mess he made, and have Lyn safe again. But he hesitated.

"I know where it is, but, I-"

"I get it, you don't want Lyn to get hurt. Lyn is my friend too, and I want her back as well. But I need you to tell me where it is. If you do, I give you my solid oath that we will get your sister back."

Toshiyan met Kirito's eyes. "You promise?"

"Yes, I do."

Toshiyan thought for a moment. Then, he nodded. "Alright, I'll help you."

"Excellent. If I can tell everyone about you, then I-."

"NO!" Toshi yelled.

Kirito jumped back, startled at the outburst. "Why?"

"I'll tell you where it is, but, don't tell anyone about me, alright?"

Kirito nodded. "Of course, but, may I at least tell Asuna. She deserves to know the stakes, and she can tell the Knights of the Blood Oath where it is too."

Toshiyan didn't object, he trusted Asuna more than he trusted Kirito. If anyone could help him, it was Asuna. "Yes, go ahead, but be discreet otherwise."

"Got it, thank you for telling me, you won't regret it!" Kirito said, almost excited. He ran in the other direction with purpose, leaving Toshiyan behind. Toshiyan sat down, reflecting on his conversation.

"If I can save Lyn, then she can help me make this right." he said to himself. "Besides, Kirito hasn't ever let me down. He won't do it now." Toshiyan thought, but there is always a back thought that occurs when you trust someone, no exceptions.

"Right?"

* * *

Toshiyan and Kirito hurried out of the store and hurried towards the south part of town. Both had a really high speed skill, and they pushed and shoved bystanders out of the way. Kirito stopped as they passed by a motorcycle renting store.

"Toshiyan, over here!"

Toshiyan stopped, and saw what Kirito was talking about, and ran towards the vehicles. He tapped on the top, and rented the bike, and the two sped down the road. Toshiyan struggled with the controls at first, but was able to adapt to keep up with Kirito.

With their new vehicles, they approached the south of the city quickly. Suddenly, their motorcycles timed out, and they came to a halt outside of the city. Kirito was about to activate it again, but Toshiyan stopped him before he could pay again.

"It doesn't matter, we're here anyway."

Kirito and Toshiyan jumped off of their bikes and ran towards the inn. They could see a small building in the distance. However, Kirito stopped them before they could get any further.

"What is it?"

"Someone else is there." he said, pointing. Toshiyan squinted, and could make out some figures in the distance. They were walking back and forth, almost patrolling.

"What are they doing?" Toshiyan asked.

"I don't know, but they don't look friendly."

"Did Kyouji hire them?"

"That's a possibility."

"It looks like their guarding the tavern, if that's the case, then we're probably on the right track."

"We need to get closer,"

They both crept towards a rock that shielded them from view. They were close enough to the guards that they could listen to the guards chatting.

"Did you find anything?" one of the guards asked.

"No, no sign of any activity." the other replied.

"Just like this for the entire day. Why are we even here?"

"Because, we're getting payed to do this, remember."

"We are?" a third voice interjected.

"Yeah, some rich kid is paying us to not let anyone in this inn."

"Why?"

"Um, I'm not really sure."

"Actually, I heard that we're guarding some chick."

"Seriously?!" the first guard asked. "Is she hot?"

"Does it matter?" the second guard asked.

"Of course, if we get bored, we could always have fun with her."

Toshiyan clenched his fists. _They're talking about Shino. My Shino! How dare they even speak like that about her!_

"Toshi, I know what you're thinking, don't-"

Toshiyan didn't let Kirito finish, he jumped from behind the rock charging full force towards the group of mercenaries. He grabbed his weapons, two beam swords. One had a yellow pigment, while the other, and electric blue. Toshiyan had picked these weapons because they had the exact weight of his daggers, and were twice as long.

"What the-"

The guard didn't have a chance to finish. Toshiyan sliced at them, being able to cut through multiple targets at a time with his extended range. Another gunner came around the corner to see Toshiyan's carnage, and pulled his gun up.

"Freeze!" the guard ordered.

Toshiyan finished with the last guard then turned to face his new threat. He began to twirl his light swords between his fingers. Both swords were spinning rapidly, creating two illuminated circles, that met with a green pigment in the middle. With his daggers, he had always found a pastime and a joy fiddling the daggers between his fingers. Now, he was using it as a strategy.

The gunner began to fire at Toshiyan. He didn't care about the prediction lines, because every bullet fired was blocked by the swords' rapid rotation. The guard kept firing at no avail, leaving Kirito the perfect opportunity to slice at the distracted guard.

"Toshiyan, you can't do that!" Kirito chastened.

"What, win? Sorry, I promise not to do that again." Toshiyan replied sarcastically.

"No, fighting in cold blood like that. You get sloppy, make mistakes. If your calm in the fight, everything is calm, and everyone get's out alright. Now, let's keep going." Kirito continued. He turned around, about to walk inside the inn.

Toshiyan didn't follow, he just stared at Kirito in disbelief. He didn't pay that much attention to what Kirito had said, all except for the last part. _'Everyone get's out alright'._ That's what he said. This hit a nerve with Toshiyan. He suddenly wanted to, explode.

"Everyone except my sister, right?!" Toshiyan retorted.

Kirito stopped dead in his tracks, realizing he should've picked his words more carefully. He turned to face the Electric Assassin.

"Toshi, now isn't the-"

"Don't even think about weaseling your way out of this one!" Toshiyan shouted.

"Toshi, I'm serious." Kirito replied.

"So am I!" _Too late to turn back now._ "How dare you try to lecture me on how to save people after what you've done!"

Kirito sighed. "I could ask you the same thing!" he exclaimed.

Toshi's eyes widened with anger, and he reached for his beam swords, clicking them both on. "I was tricked by Laughing Coffin, what's your excuse!"

Kirito was about to say something, but decided against it. He took a deep breath, and looked at Toshi in the eyes. "Toshi, neither of us have a viable excuse for-"

"What is wrong with you!" Toshiyan exploded. "You didn't even apologize for Lyn's death! Now, you don't want to pin the blame on both of us!"

Kirito was beginning to panic. This was not the way he hoped that this conversation would go, but he had to keep trying. "No Toshi, it's not like that!"

"You expect me to believe that! Kirito, it's your fault that Lyn's dead. I trusted you to help me, and you didn't. Why? What was so important that you had to abandon your promise, and let her die?!"

"It's because Asuna was in danger!"

Toshiyan froze. _What?_

"She was in danger, and I had to choose. I really did want to follow you, but when I was placed with a split second choice, I made the one that benefitted me." Kirito continued. "The truth is, there's nothing that you could say, that I haven't already said for myself. I feel more guilt that you're giving me credit for! Because everytime I see you, I'm reminded of my mistake!"

Toshiyan was confused. Kirito was claiming the exact opposite of his thoughts for years. _He did it to save Asuna?_

"I was really unsure what to do when you arrived in my group." Kirito explained. "I didn't want to kick you out, but I knew that you could never forgive me for what I did either. So, I just, distanced myself, which worked out because you did the same."

All of the sudden, Toshi couldn't help but feel guilty. It was true, he had done the same. _How can I hold him accountable for doing what he thought was right._ Toshi retracted his swords and threw them down.

"What, what is it!" Kirito asked urgently.

"Why do you make it so hard for me to hate you!" Toshiyan exclaimed. He looked down at the ground, and thought for a moment. He remembered how he had gone to Kirito for help in Aincrad. He remembered how Kirito had touched the lives of so many people. He did the best he could to help anyone and everyone. He wasn't perfect, but that wasn't the point. The point was that Kirito tried, and that's the only thing any of us can do

"Kirito, you've done so much to help others. I, can't hold it against you for making the choice that you did. No one should have to do that, especially kids like us." Toshiyan stated.

Kirito nodded. "I apologize for everything. I know that there's nothing I can do to make it up to you, but, at least, give me a chance for us be friends."

Toshiyan nodded. "Sure, and Kirito?"

"What,"

"I forgive you."

Kirito smiled in response. "Thank you."

They were about to go inside the tavern, but Toshi thought of something. He remembered something that Asuna had said to him about Kirito.

"Kirito, did you tell Asuna about how you felt?"

"What, no." Kirito replied. "I don't want to burden her with my problems. I'll fight my own battles and help her when she needs it."

"Kirito, she want's to help you."

"What do you mean?"

"She worries about you. She really does care about you, and she's hurt that you help her so much and she doesn't help you. If you want to help her, then let her help you."

Kirito nodded. "Thanks, I'll think about that. Are you ready?" he asked, gesturing towards the door.

Toshiyan nodded, and they both pushed the door open. It wasn't very big on the inside, barely being able to fit about fifteen people. Despite that, the inn was empty.

"Wait, where's Sinon?"

"Shouichi said that the passage was underneath the inn. We should look for a secret door."

Toshiyan examined the main area while Kirito went into the back room. Toshiyan moved tables and even looked behind the counter. Toshiyan was about to go find Kirito, but he accidently bumped a bottle off the counter, knocking it out of view. It shattered, and Toshiyan winced. He peered over the counter to see the damage, but noticed something. The bottle's contents, were disappearing into the floor. Toshiyan smiled.

"Kirito, I think I've found something."

Kirito walked out of the back room. "Did you find it?"

"I think so," he replied. Toshiyan activated his beam swords, and cut a hole where the bottle fell. He cut as accurately as he could, and as soon as he was done, he stomped on the detached circle. Immediately, it fell down, shattering on a hallway underneath the tavern.

"Good job," Kirito complimented. Kirito jumped down the hole, and Toshiyan followed after him.

The hallway went on for a long while. Lights flickered, and it looked unkept. Then Toshiyan's eyes widened.

"Look!"

Kirito saw what he did. There was a door at the end of the tunnel. They both hurried down the corridor, and stopped in front of the door.

"You go in first." Kirito offered. "You should be the first person she sees."

"Thank you." Toshiyan replied. He reached for the door, and opened it slowly. He crept into the room, and-

He saw nothing.

Toshi's heart fell. All that work, for nothing. He had failed again, and Shino was that much further away. He was about to turn back when the door close suddenly, causing Toshiyan to jump back. The room was very dimly lit, and Toshi was more than a little disconcerted. Suddenly, he was forced to the ground by someone. This other player had bent Toshiyan's arm back at an unnatural angle, causing Toshiyan to cry out.

"Who are you?!" the other player asked.

Toshiyan looked up at his assailant. She had short, teal colored hair tied to her sides, and had glowing green eyes. Toshiyan recognized her in a second, but he couldn't say the same for her.

"Shino!"

Sinon tightened her grip, but Toshi ignored the increased pain. "I asked who you are!"

"Shino, it's me, Toshi."

She almost let go, but then tightened it again. "Not possible!"

"Why not?"

"Because, Kyouji, you killed him!"

Suddenly it clicked. She couldn't tell that he was Toshi, she just thought that he was Kyouji. It would make sense, after everything Kyouji has done, this idea wouldn't be too farfetched.

"Shino, I'm telling you, it's me!"

"Kyouji, this is not a game! Stop lying, I know it's you!"

Toshiyan was positive that she would break his arm if she was allowed to continue. He gasped in pain, but still found the strength to speak.

"I-I can prove it!"

"Really? How?" she replied sarcastically.

Toshi thought for a moment, trying to pull an experience that Kyouji wouldn't know. He obviously couldn't do anything from Shino's past, that was fair game for Kyouji's knowledge. He would have to pick something more recent.

"You had told me to come pick you up from the police station after visiting Kyouji."

Sinon's face began to soften, but she kept her grip.

"You were upset, because Kyouji said that he hated you, and that you could never care about anything, and no one could care about you."

Sinon began to relax, and Toshi got the feeling that what he was saying was working.

"I told you that we all cared about you, and that we loved and respected you. And for me as an individual, I love you more than I've ever loved anyone else in my entire life."

Sinon was dead silent, but she fully let go of Toshiyan. He sat up, massaging his arm, and saw that Sinon, was almost in tears.

"Y-You're alive!" she cried.

"If you had kept that up I wouldn't be," Toshiyan complained. "That really-"

He was interrupted when he was tackled yet again by Shino. He stared up into her beautiful eyes, and she stared at him in disbelief and awe. "You're, really here. I thought that-"

"I know, you were right to be suspicious, but I'm here now."

She laid her head down on Toshi's chest and just began to sob. Toshiyan smiled and began to shed some tears as well. He took a moment, just to be with her, and he loved every minute of it. He lifted her chin, and they shared a kiss. Again, like before, Toshi always felt good when they kissed. It made him feel, wanted, loved, something he didn't have for the past year. They broke apart when oxygen demanded it, and he sighed.

"I'm so sorry I didn't get here sooner." Toshiyan continued.

"I know, but Kyouji stabbed you with the syringe. How are you still-"

"He didn't give me enough to kill me, and with proper medical help I got really quickly, I turned out fine."

"Thank goodness." she replied.

"Did Kyouji hurt you?" Toshiyan asked.

"He, came a couple of times, and he tried to, woo and kiss me. I had none of it, and told him to leave, but he would still come and torment me."

Toshiyan frowned angrily. _I'm gonna kill him if he tries anything_.

"Shino, I love you. I won't let him touch you again."

Suddenly, they realized that there was someone was pounding on the door. Toshiyan realized that despite everything, Kirito had been locked outside. Sinon panicked.

"Oh no, It's Kyouji!"

Toshiyan shook his head. "No, That's Kirito."

"He's here?"

"Yes, I wouldn't have been able to find you otherwise. Kirito showed me the ropes, and I was able to find you."

Sinon smiled. "Alright, but Toshi."

"Yeah,"

"I'm sorry, for pinning you to the ground like that."

"It's fine, I would've done the same thing."

"And Toshi, I just want to say, I love you."

Toshi paused. Shino was here, and she loved him. Someone like him, a person who is as imperfect as one could get, but she loved him. He was the luckiest person in the entire world.

"I love you too." he replied.

Suddenly, he heard something outside, and the knocking stopped. Both Sinon and Toshiyan stared at the door. Suddenly, it began to unlock, and Sinon began to panic.

"That's Kyouji, he's the only one with the key for the door!"

"Wait, how come I could get in then?"

"This door can lock on my side, but I had it unlocked. Kyouji is the only one that can get in otherwise."

Toshiyan reached for his swords. "Let him come, I'll beat him to a pulp!"

"No, hide, if he thinks that I'm in any danger of escaping, he'll kill me!"

Toshiyan realized why that was a big deal. A rigged NerveGear would prevent anyone from escaping, and kill them if they died in the game. Toshiyan couldn't risk that.

"Where do I go then?"

"There's a spot behind the door, use that, but hurry!"

Toshiyan sprinted to the spot, and hid there. Suddenly, the door sprung open, and Toshi had to be careful not to move or Kyouji would notice him.

"Well hello again, my bride to be…" Kyouji hissed.

* * *

' **Tis the season to take hostages, am I right? No? Oh, oops. Well, that went downhill quickly. Be sure to leave a review on how I did. I hope you enjoyed it!**

 **Zippy**


	15. Chapter 14

**Here we go, big battle chapter. Let's do it!**

 **Oh, no more flashbacks by the way, and I also dub this chapter K++, for intensity.**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Sinon turned away from the intruder. "Kyouji, leave now!" she ordered.

"You wouldn't send me away after all of the planning I did, my love." Spiegel stated.

"You aren't going to get me to do anything Kyouji!" Sinon retorted.

"On the contrary," Spiegel replied, a gleam of pride in his eye. "You're attached to a NerveGear, that if I will it, can kill you. So, you're going to do what I say."

"You wouldn't kill me, I know you Kyouji. You're upset and angry, please, let people help you. If you let me go, I can-"

"I don't need help from anyone!" Spiegel exclaimed. "I only need you."

"If you think keeping me captive here is going to help your case, then I guess I was wrong about you!"

Spiegel slapped Sinon, causing Toshiyan to clench his fists in rage. Sinon recoiled slightly, while Spiegel pointed at her.

"You may not understand it yet, but I'm doing this for you!" Spiegel snapped. " All you have to do is listen to me, and it will all work out. If you let me, I can make you happy like no one else could. Not Kirito, not Toshi, only me!"

"That is the largest dose of bull crap I have heard in my entire life!" Toshiyan shouted, kicking the door closed. Sinon jumped back slightly, but Spiegel just stood still. He turned to face Toshiyan with amusement.

"I thought I killed you."

"Turns out, I'm allergic to dying. Go figure."

"You know nothing!" Spiegel yelled, pulling out a large rifle. "You could never love her the way I do!"

"You're right," Toshiyan replied. "You only care about what you want. If you really loved her, then you'd let her make her own choice, instead of keeping her hostage here like your toy!."

Spiegel gritted his teeth. "You mind your own business, or else you'll understand the reason why they call me-"

He was interrupted by a gasp. He was kicked the back of the knees with a force that made him collapse on one knee. Sinon then put Spiegel into a chokehold, making him slowly lose life points.

"Kyouji, I really hoped for better from you." Sinon said quietly. She then stared at Toshiyan. "Swords, now!" she ordered.

It took Toshiyan a moment to fully comprehend what just happened, but then caught on. He extended his swords, and stabbed both of them into Spiegel's small body. His eHP was going down rapidly. Regardless, Spiegel didn't struggle.

"You really should've thought this through better, because now, not only will you never see Shino again, but now you can't get any information from me. Do you hear me, you will never see her agai-" he yelled, cut off by HP reaching zero. He vanished into crystals, and Toshiyan swords collapsed to the floor as they retracted.

"You know what, I didn't see that coming."

"What, you didn't expect me to let him have it after everything that's happened?"

"Yes, I mean no, I mean, it was very cool to watch, but, uh, promise me something?"

"Yeah?"

"Never let me get on your bad side, please?"

Sinon laughed a little. "Sure thing,"

"Um, guys!" another voice yelled. Both Toshiyan and Sinon stared through the open door to see Kirito collapsed on the floor, a little white dart of energy sticking out of his shoulder. "I'm stuck!"

"Yeah you are," Toshiyan replied. "Let me hep you out with that."

Toshiyan grabbed one of his beam swords, and marched towards the swordsman. He slashed at the dart, and held a hand out to Kirito, who accepted it.

"Thank you," Kirito said, gratefully. "Is Shino alright?"

"From what I can tell, she's alright, but she still can't log out."

"I was worried about that." Kirito replied. "Without a terminal to log her out, I don't know how to get her out."

"Wait, there's no way for her to log out!"

"Well not in the game." Kirito continued. "The NerveGear she has on can be disconnected from the outside."

"No you can't, if you take the NerveGear off her, it will fry her brain!"

"What!" Sinon exclaimed from the doorway.

"No it won't," Kirito replied. "The university in Tokyo did a study on this. When worn again, the NerveGear can be unplugged, Kayaba only programmed it to kill you in SAO."

"But this a rigged NerveGear, how do we know it does the same thing in SAO?"

"Yeah, I don't want to die, but I don't want to be stuck in this stinky cell forever either."

Both Kirito and Toshiyan froze, turning slowly towards Sinon. She looked curiously at them both. "Say that again," Kirito said.

"I said that I don't want to die."

"No, after that, you said that it smelled right?" Toshiyan asked hurriedly.

"Um, yeah, what does that have to do with anything?"

Toshiyan's face morphed into a large grin. He knew what Kirito was thinking, and if they were right, they could find Shino.

"Shino, can you still access your menu?" Kirito asked.

"Yeah, just not the logout button, why?"

"Open your menu, and open the settings option."

Sinon swiped her hand to do what she was asked. She tapped on the settings button and it opened a different page. "What do I do now?"

"Look on your top left, you should see a run diagnostics button. Press it." Kirito continued.

Sinon tapped the button, and a loading button appeared. When it was done, Sinon stared at it confused. "It says that everything is working, except for smell. What does that mean?"

"It means that the game isn't giving information to your brain fully. You're not smelling what the game wants you to, meaning-"

"Meaning whatever I'm smelling, is in the real world!" Sinon exclaimed.

"Exactly," Toshiyan confirmed. "So tell us, what does it smell like?"

She thought for a moment, trying to pinpoint the smell. "It smells old, and really terrible. You know at the dentist's office, but like it's been rotting for years."

Toshiyan nodded. "May be its at a closed down hospital."

"Good idea, you guys go look." Sinon commented.

"We'll see what we can find," Kirito confirmed.

"Wait, what if Kyouji comes back?" Toshiyan said worriedly. "Chances are he isn't very happy, he'll-"

"Be distracted," Sinon finished. "It'll give you guys the advantage. He'll be diving, and you can find me. I'll be fine."

"But-"

"Toshi, I can handle myself."

"I know, it's just that, I'm worried."

"And I love you all the more for it." Sinon said, taking some steps towards Toshiyan. "Think of the bigger picture. He can't hurt me in this world, but I can still slow him down enough to where you can find him, and me."

Toshiyan nodded. _Yeah, but he could still get to you, and do who knows what!_ he thought, remembering what happened to Asuna. "I can't take any chances."

"Compromise," Kirito interjected. "I can stay and protect her, while you look. You're the one with the car anyway."

Toshiyan was about to interject, but decided against it. He knew that Kirito could protect her, the only person he would trust more was himself. "Thank you, Kirito."

"No problem, now go and find Kyouji." Kirito ordered.

"Alright," Toshiyan said, opening his menu.

"Wait!" Sinon interjected. Toshiyan paused, looking at her.

"Yeah?"

"I know that you want me safe, but don't do anything stupid like getting yourself hurt, alright!"

Toshiyan smiled. "I'll do my best."

"Good, and another thing." She stood on her tip toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek, causing him to blush slightly. "Good luck."

Toshiyan grinned ear to ear. With a new sense of determination, he opened his menu and clicked the logout button.

 _I will find you, Shino. I will._

Toshi woke up on his bed, and practically threw the Amusphere off of him. He dashed for his computer and booted up a search engine. He first tried looking up closed down hospitals, but realized he needed to think a little smaller. _I'll try looking up where Dr. Shinkawa works, that will narrow it down._

It took some digging, but he found a good place to look. The main hospital in his city, Waterflower Health, was where Dr. Shinkawa worked. The hospital used to be in another location, and not nearly as big as its current building. Not only that, but it kept all of its large equipment inside a warehouse close by. _Bingo!_ Toshi thought, printing the address.

While he was printing the map, he reached for his phone and called Asuna, she would come in handy. The phone rang, but his obnoxious printer was drowning out the noise. Finally, Asuna picked up.

"Hello,"

"Asuna, it's Toshi, I think that I found Shino."

"Are you serious?!"

"Yeah, I think that she's being kept at a warehouse near his dad's last hospital job."

"That would make sense, but shouldn't you call the police?"

"They wouldn't be able to do much, they're using Shino as a hostage, but I need their help. I want you to tell them to meet me at the hospital."

"Alright, do you want me to help?"

"Keep an eye on Kirito, he's keeping an eye on Shino in the game."

"What, then why did-"

"Look Asuna, I can't explain everything right now, but I need you to trust me. Can you get the police?"

"Alright, I'll do that."

"Thank you," Toshi concluded, as he watched the printer finish the directions. "I have to go, thank you."

"Good luck."

Toshi hung up, grabbed the map, and closed the door behind him as he left. He went to his car, and followed the map to the closed hospital. He parked outside of the lot, and examined the abandoned facility. Due to the lack of care, wild plants were growing on the decaying walls. A barbed wire fence surrounded the outside of the building, but Toshi have no problem climbing over it. He waited for Asuna to fulfil her part of the promise.

Suddenly, he could see three blue and white cars coming in his direction. He counted three police cars as they silently pulled into the lot. One officer got out, armed fully with a pistol, club, and dominating mustache.

"Are you Mr. Yanada?"

"Yes, I see you got Asuna's message."

"We did, now, tell me where he is and we'll take it from here."

 _Oh, Asuna must've not told them about Shino as a hostage._ "But officer, this is really important!"

"Well you bet it is." The officer continued. "We have a maniac on the loose with deaths on his head!"

"He has a hostage!" Toshi exclaimed.

The officer paused, obviously not taking that statement lightly. "Are you sure?"

"Positive, he kidnapped a girl named Shino Asada, and has her trapped in a VRMMO. She's being kept in a warehouse behind the hospital, but if you send in the big guns, he could kill her."

The officer nodded. "What's your name, kid?"

 _I'm 19._ "My name is Toshi."

"Why should I let you go in?"

"Because, I think that he'll react differently to me. I can get him away from Shino in order for you to come in and apprehend him."

"I can't let you do that, he's a dangerous criminal that has killed before."

 _He's not the only one._

"Let him do it," a high pitched voice called. "He can do it!"

Another officer rolled down his window. "If Peterson says to let him do it, you have to let him do it."

The officer sighed. "I don't care if the chief said it, he's not going in!"

"But Peterson hasn't been wrong in a single case since he's been hired."

The older officer thought for a moment, then turned to Toshi. "You know Kyouji?"

"Yes,"

"You think that you can talk him into submission?"

"Absolutely," _I think._

The officer turned to another car and called a name. "Peterson!" he shouted.

A head popped out of a vehicle, and a tall skinny man jumped out, only to trip on his way over. The older officer sighed as the young one approached.

"Yes sir?" he asked, in an unnaturally high voice; that caused Toshi to question if this officer had been sucking on Helium for his entire life.

"Give him an alarm button."

"Yes sir!" Peterson exclaimed, reaching into his belt and handed the device to Toshi. "Okey, so if you press the button, we bring out the AKs and go ballistic on the bunch!"

"Peterson, now is not the time!" the older officer said harshly. "What he's trying to say is that when you press this button," The officer pointed at the button on a small device. "It tells us to come in, press it if you need backup.

"Understood." Toshi replied. He then began to climb the fence, as Peterson mumbled to the other officer.

"The Ghost Master is really overpowered."

"What?"

"I mean that he's gonna do good, just you wait."

"For your sake, he better."

Toshi landed on the other side, and he continued on. At first, he tried going through the front doors, but that was a bust, as they were sealed by a rusted chain. _If I can't get through, neither can Kyouji._

He could faintly hear the officers try to open the gate, but he kept walking around the building. He noticed a smaller building nearby the hospital, Toshi hurried towards it. _That has to be the warehouse._

He walked up to the small door leading into the warehouse, and noticed something that made him throw all his doubts away. Nearby, a severed chain, almost identical to the one on the main building, had been thrown nearby the door. _Kyouji has to be here._

He pushed the door open slowly, and to his dismay, it squeaked loudly, causing him to cringe. He squeezed himself through the door, and walked inside the warehouse. Immediately, he was rushed with the putrid smell of rotting metal, and sight of empty boxes and old machinery.

He was careful to be as quiet as possible, and snuck around the quiet building. Luckily, the lights were on, and he could clearly see where he was going. The floor he was stepping on was covered in decaying tile, that had rotted to the point of giving way for some foliage to grow.

He saw a metal staircase, leading to a higher floor of the warehouse that was just beyond his sights. He was about to hold onto the railing as he ascended, but decided against it after seeing the state it was in. The bolts on it had rusted off, and it looked as if it was about to collapse at the slightest of touch.

He snuck up the stairs quietly and hid when he reached the top. When he peered over a large crate, he had to stop himself from gasping.

 _Shino!_

He gazed Shino who wore a NerveGear on her head, obstructing her face. She was hooked up to a variety of machines. Sitting next to her was Kyouji. Toshi snuck closer and realized that not only was he staring at her, he was playing with her hair!

He was about to make his move when Kyouji suddenly pulled his phone out, and examined it. He smirked, and turned in Toshi's direction.

"I know you're there, Toshi, face me or else."

Toshi froze, not knowing what to do. _Crap!_ _What do I do!?_ But he slowly stood up, and saw that Kyouji was still staring right at Shino. He took some careful steps towards Kyouji, who still seemed preoccupied.

"How did-"

"This place was under 24/7 surveillance, and I sill have access to all the cameras." I saw you coming before you squeaked the door." He turned his phone off, and Toshi really hoped that he didn't see the police. His plan wasn't working at all. Kyouji leaned back in his chair. "Look at her, she is still beautiful, even if she was unconscious."

"Kyouji, stop this, you can't hold this up. Let her go, and maybe you can still-"

"You know, I gave up everything for her. When before I was off of parole, I met with an associate of my brother's. After my brother had gone soft, he offered me a job to come and kill for him. Of course, I couldn't do anything while I was in jail, but I still worked with him.

"PoH, right?"

"How perceptive, you may just have a brain. I was able to keep him underground by telling him how to access the hospital for him and his comrades' records. Then, I got out of jail, but when I ask for his help to get my revenge on you and Kirito, he says no. The nerve!"

Toshi remembered something. _"No files, no Birth certificates, they don't exist."_ Principal Yamo's voice echoed.

"That's why their records are missing, you helped delete them, but the-"

"Yes, the certificates are kept digitally at the Government Archive. You'd be surprised how easily PoH was able to completely erase himself from existence. At any rate, I directly went against him, and was able to get barely enough of the Death Gun poison to kill you. I gave up the opportunity of a lifetime for her. Meaning I love her more than anyone else can, including you."

"You're insane, if you think this whole thing will win her over."

"She doesn't understand," Kyouji replied, standing up. Toshi took a few steps back, but still kept quiet. "I'm doing this for her, to prove my love for her. There seems to be only one problem, and that problem is you. She can't fully love me if you're still in the picture, which means that this time, I'll make sure you stay dead!"

Kyouji lunged at Toshi, but Toshi was able to dodge just in time. Kyouji then reached in his sweater pocket and pulled out a knife, and began to slash at Toshi. Toshi was losing ground, gaining a cut on his cheek and a harsher one near his shoulder.

But Toshi knew how to fight with knives.

He stepped to the side of another strike, and elbowed him in the back, causing Kyouji to lose his balance. Toshi booked for the stairs, and Kyouji followed close after. When Kyouji got to the bottom, he paced the empty warehouse, trying to find Toshi.

"You know, my brother told me a little about you, and how you worked for him. You were called the Electric assassin, right?

Toshi's blood began to crawl as he was hiding. _He knows?!_

"You had quite the reputation, killing 19 people in your service, all while never knowing that they were Green players." Kyouji continued, with a chuckle. "I was sure that he was joking, yet here you are."

A plan began to formulate in Toshi's head. He reached for an empty jar, and jumped out into view.

"Hey!" he shouted, getting Kyouji's attention. He then threw the jar in Kyouji's direction, causing him to throw his arms up to act as a shield. However, the jar flew over Kyouji's head, smashing into a pile of boxes.

"Is that the best you can do?" Kyouji mocked. Toshi just pointed behind Kyouji, and he realized what had happened. The shaken boxes had been knocked over, and the tower fell towards him. However, the empty boxes bounced harmlessly off of him, causing him to smirk. "You're really bad at th-

Kyouji immediately regretted turning around as Toshi was standing right behind him. He punched Kyouji in the face, causing him to reel, kicking cardboard boxes as he did so. Toshi kept jabbing at him, keeping the pressure on. The tides were turning in his favor.

But Kyouji used his low stance as an advantage. He punched Toshi in the stomach, causing him to gasp. Kyouji then grabbed Toshi's shoulders, and threw him against the wall. Toshi slumped to the floor as Kyouji walked towards him.

"He also told me about how he sent a goon to kill your sister, right in front of you!"

"You don't know anything!" Toshi yelled, lunging at Kyouji. He threw a punch, and Kyouji recoiled, but stayed up.

"I know enough, why would Shino want to be with a killer like you!"

Toshi paused. _I, don't know._

Kyouji used this opportunity to strike. He kicked Toshi in the legs, and pushed him to the ground.

"You will never beat me, my love for Shino gives me strength!"

"That isn't love," Toshi said, getting back to his feet. "Kyouji, that's obsession. You aren't willing to treat her as an individual. To you, she's an object!"

Kyouji growled furiously and charged at him, knife in hand. Toshi fought back, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to get to an advantage.

"You can't win!" Kyouji jeered. He hit Toshi in the face, and Toshi dropped to his knees.

 _The fact is, I don't deserve to win. No one could ever love me fully, not after everything I've done._

Kyouji smirked. "You would never have been loved anyway. All you are is a pile trash who has killed people. Who would even want to love you. You will always be a murderer!"

He raised the knife, and Toshi was almost ready to accept his fate. However, then he remembered something. Time around him seemed to freeze, as he looked back on everything. After his time in SAO up to now, he had called himself a killer. He had, after all, killed innocent people. But never in his entire life, had he ever heard someone else say it. It seemed, odd.

" _You will always be a murderer!"_ Kyouji's voice said. Toshi thought for a moment, then remembered how Shouichi had changed, but he was still being punished for his actions. _I've been given the opportunity to change. I've always been given that choice, most people aren't given that luxury. However, I was so busy trying to punish myself that I never really realized, that I'm not a murderer. I may have made mistakes, but I'm not defined by them, I'm defined by who I choose to be now! So many people sacrifice for me, and if I die, all of their work will be for nothing. I can't die, for my friends, family, Shino, and most importantly, myself!_

Kyouji paused, almost glorifying this moment. "Shino is mine, and she will always be mine, and now it's time for you to die!"

Toshi acted quickly. He grabbed the arm that Kyouji's knife was in. He then slammed it into his knee, combining the force of the stab and his own. Kyouji helped with intense pain, dropping the knife.

Toshi picked it up, studying the weapon. "Your first mistake was giving a knife to me. It's over, you're done fighting."

Kyouji clutched his arm, cursing under his breath. His face morphed into a smirk. "Go ahead then, kill me like you killed Serpent. End this right now."

Toshi shook his head. "No, I'm not going to. However, I am going to make sure you'll never hurt anyone again."

Toshi reached into his pocket, and finally pressed the button. Immediately, the warehouse door flew open, and several officers flooded into the warehouse. Peterson, and another officer ran towards Kyouji. Kyouji glared at Toshi as the officers came in.

"I can't let you win!" Kyouji shouted, pulling out another syringe, and charged at Toshi. However, a police taser was shot at Kyouji, and he was rendered immobile. Toshi turned to see Peterson still holding the taser.

"Thanks,"

"I always wondered what this did." Peterson replied, in his still high pitched voice.

The officers came and took Kyouji away, others scanned the perimeter, checking for any other suspicious activity. The same officer Toshi had talked to before approached.

"Are you alright?" he asked. "You look terrible."

"Yeah, I'm alright." _In fact, I feel better than I have ever felt in a long time._ "Shino is upstairs, you should go and help her."

"Yeah, we need to run some tests, just to make sure the Kyouji feller didn't pull anything funny. Thank you for your help."

Toshi nodded, and the officer walked away. Toshi sat down against a large shelf, trying to take everything in.

 _I did it. Things are going to change, and everything is going to be better now._

* * *

 **Well, how was that for intensity. I tried to make it as original as possible, because I know this scenario is close to what happened at the end of Alfheim. Don't go away, I still have to write the epilogue, and also be sure to leave a review. Until next time!**

 **Zippy**


	16. Epilogue

**All my comments will be below. This has a lot crammed in, so pay attention! See you at the end!**

 **Zippy**

* * *

Toshi stood outside the door to the house. He stared at it, almost as if he was gazing in there. Shino was still being examined, but this wasn't her. This was the door that determined something just as important.

 _My mom is in here, she has no idea I'm coming._ Toshi thought. He felt the stitches on his cheek, not because they hurt, but because he wondered how to break everything to her. _She deserves to know what happened to Lyn, the real question is whether she'll still love me or not._

Toshi pushed the door open, peering through the house. He heard something in the kitchen, and opened the door fully.

"Mom?"

Toshi's mother glanced at the door. "Toshi, I'm glad you're here. You're just in time for lunch."

"Um, we need to talk."

"Well, good. Have a seat by the counter over here."

Toshi complied and walked towards the counter. He sat on a stool, facing his mother on the opposite side. She was cutting an assortment of vegetables, but she was still silent.

"I'm listening,"

"Alright, um, we need to talk about, well, I-"

"Toshi, what's wrong?"

"Huh?"

"You always do that when you're nervous about something. You can tell me anything, you know."

 _Yeah, probably anything but this._ Toshi sighed. _I have to do it, I can't turn back now._

"We need to talk about Lyn!" he said, almost yelling.

Toshi's mom stopped. He couldn't see her face, but he had a guess on what she was thinking. "Well, what about Lyn?"

"I-" The words choked in his throat, almost rejecting to be uttered. "I, lied to you."

She trained turned away, so Toshi still couldn't see any signs of emotion. "About what,"

"I, um, should start from the beginning."

"Good idea,"

"Well, I told you about how Lyn had been really good in the game, right."

"Yes, you told us she was killed in action."

"I, um, was partially right in saying that, but that's where it kinda, goes downhill."

"Toshi,"

"What?"

"You're beating around the bush, why?"

Toshi froze. _Why does my mother have to know me so well?!_ "It's because, um, because-"

"Toshi, please tell me."

 _She has to know._ Toshi sighed, hanging his head. "Lyn's dead because of me!"

Toshi's mom was still silent, leaning against the counter. He wanted to know so badly what she was thinking. _I need to keep going._

"Look, I wanted to join her guild, but when I was turned down, I wanted to join the guild that paid the most. I looked and got accepted, but I was wrong about that guild. I was trying to hunt criminals in the game, but they tricked me into killing innocent people instead."

"Toshi, I-"

"I know," Toshi continued, his eyes watering. "It doesn't justify anything I did, and it all still haunts me. But as soon as I quit, they took Lyn. I tried get her back, but I-" Toshi batted at tears in his eyes. "I couldn't help her, and she died because I wasn't strong enough. I was stupid, and because of it, I lost my best friend!"

His mother still didn't turn around, and was quiet for a moment. Toshi sighed. "There you go, that's why Lyn died, because of me." Toshi couldn't decipher a thing about what his mom was thinking. "I'm sorry for lying to you, I'll leave now."

Toshi stood up, and took a few steps towards the door.

"Stop!" his mother ordered.

Toshi stopped, mid-step. He turned again, and saw his mother. Tears stained her cheeks, and she stared right back at Toshi. "I know."

"What?"

"I knew about Lyn, your father and I did."

Toshi's eyes widened. "What?"

"Do you remember how you had to stay in the hospital for a while after you got out of SAO?"

"Yeah,"

"Well, we were both at home, your father and I. We were excited, talking about plans for you, but, then a man came to our door. He told us many things about you and Lyn, including about your time with that murder guild."

Toshi sat down in a chair nearby. _That doesn't make any sense, she knew this whole time!_

"Then, why didn't you say anything?" Toshi replied.

"Because, I wasn't sure." she said. "I didn't want to believe him, so your father and I kept quiet. However, as time went on, we began to notice certain behaviors from you that made us realize that the man was right."

"What behaviors?"

"You kept pushing us away. You wouldn't accept money, help, or anything. You hung out with less and less of your friends, and you isolated yourself in the middle of town."

"I'm sorry, it's just that, I was afraid."

"Afraid of us?" his mother asked.

"No, the opposite. I was afraid of losing you. I was afraid that you would hate me, like I hated myself."

Toshi's mother began to cry again. She walked over to her son, and pulled him into an embrace. "Toshi I want you to never forget this. Your father and I will never stop loving you. No matter what happens, no actions could ever break that bond our family shares. Do you understand?"

Toshi nodded, sobbing into his mom's shoulders. She smiled, and let him go. "Wait here, I need to get something." she said.

She walked upstairs for a moment, leaving Toshi behind. _I can't believe that she did that._ Toshi melted into the chair, feeling a deeper peace than before, as if an anvil had been lifted off of him. He smiled to himself. _I love my family._

His mother came back down, holding something small inside her palm. Toshi stood up, wiping away what moisture was left on his face. "What's that?"

"The man that came gave me this, telling me to give it to you, and you would know what to do with it." She lifted the lid to reveal what looked like a flash drive. Toshi picked up the small piece of technology. "I tried to plug it into a computer, but it wouldn't fit anywhere. Do you know what it does?"

"No," Toshi replied. "I don't."

Suddenly, Toshi heard a buzzing. His mother reached into her pocket, grabbing her phone. She stood up as she read the message. "Toshi, I have to go, but please, if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."

"What is it?"

"It's about your father, I have to go to the hospital to check on him."

"Alright, do you need me to come?"

"No thank you, I'll do fine."

"Okay, I love you." Toshi said.

His mom smiled back at him. "I love you too."

She hurried out the door, and Toshi went to his car parked outside. He examined the drive again, as he sat in the car. _What is this?_

Toshi drove back to his apartment, still racking his brain for possibilities. He unlocked the door, carrying the drive, and some mail he got. He lay down on his bed, holding the drive up to his vision.

 _What machine can hold this drive? It has to be electronic, but it isn't a computer. What is it?_

Suddenly, it hit him. There was one machine he had, that was different from any other. He got off his bed, and walked towards his closet. He opened it, and looked at the very top shelf. There, the NerveGear was, a small amount of dust clinging to it.

He reached for it, and pulled it down. He felt around the machine, trying to find a hole that would match the drive. Then, there it was. The plug that would normally connected the computer with the NerveGear fit the drive perfectly as he plugged it in. He plugged the NerveGear into the wall, and then lay on his bed.

"Link start?" he said, almost unsure if it would work.

Color filled his vision, zooming past him as he was launched forward. As soon as the system was done with the checklist, he spawned inside an empty room. He looked around him, only to find nothing there. The room was brightly lit, but seemed to go on forever. He activated his menu, trying to see if he could do anything.

"Greetings, Toshiyan." a voice said.

Toshiyan stopped. He looked in front of him, and saw a figure walk in towards him. He was tall, and wore a lab coat. He also had light gray hair, but looked surprisingly young.

"Who are you?"

"You may know me as Akihiko Kayaba, however, if you wish, you may know me as commander Heathcliff."

"Heathcliff?!" Toshiyan yelled. He reached for his daggers, but they were no where to be found.

"Calm down, I'm not here to harm you. I wish to speak to you."

"What if I'm not interested in anything you have to say?"

"Then, you don't have to listen, but I do have answers for some of your questions. Some of which have to do with my actions towards you in SAO."

Toshiyan paused, trying to figure out what Kayaba was playing at. _Does he have any information on Lyn? How would I know if he's lying to me._

"How are you here?" Toshi stated. "I thought you died."

"My physical body died, true." Kayaba continued. "However, I was able to copy my mind into the virtual world. This form isn't my mind however, it is merely a program of artificial intelligence that represents me."

 _This guy had way too much free time._ "So, why are you here?"

"I serve two functions, I am to tell you a message from the real Kayaba to start, and the second objective I shall reveal later."

"Fine, go ahead."

"Would like know why you were rejected from the Knights of the Blood Oath?"

"Um, you told me it was because of your regulations, right?"

"Yes, but that wasn't all. The Electric Dragon Daggers were too powerful for you to use on any normal boss. I knew that you would be able to help beat the game drastically by using them. I also needed you to deal with another problem."

"What was that?"

"I needed you to take care of Laughing Coffin."

Toshiyan clenched his fists. "You mean that you knew?! And you let me go through with it."

"I did, but if it's of any compensation, that is what I feel the most remorse for."

"You think that's supposed to make it any better! People died, all because of you and your, twisted game."

"Many more would've died, had you not intervened."

"What?"

"I calculated a formula, that tracked the death toll of Laughing Coffin. The were on the verge of a massive growth, had they been allowed to continue, they would've killed at least another 2,000 people."

Toshiyan tried to contemplate that. _The game would've killed more than it did? But it already killed 4000 people! I might have died._

"I couldn't stand by to watch them ruin my world. So, I sent you to deal with them. I took no pleasure in it, but the result came the same. We were able to tear Laughing Coffin down before they could do any more harm. It was unfortunate that Lyn died in the crossfire, she was an amazing strategist, and she was able to minimize the casualties on many occasions."

Toshiyan didn't know what to think. _I should be mad, but what he's saying makes sense._

"To conclude, I made sure that you could join the Front lines, once I made sure that your daggers wouldn't pose such a serious threat. When you were in danger of arrest in the real world, I ensured your liberation."

"Why, what did you have to gain?"

"You did more for the salvation of those in Aincrad, save it be Kirito who liberated them, and you took down the worst murder guild in all of Sword Art Online. You have no reason to punished."

Toshiyan was awestruck, not knowing how to react. Why did Akihiko Kayaba, the killer of thousands, take admiration to the person who helped them? _Maybe, he isn't as bad as I thought?_

"Also, there is the matter of your unique ability."

"Unique ability?" Toshiyan asked. "I didn't have a-"

"Stealth," Kayaba interrupted.

Toshi paused. He remembered that, he used it many times to hide from monsters. However, as soon as he realized that he used the ability against other players, he never used it again. "That was a unique ability?"

"Indeed," Kayaba confirmed. "Its qualification was for the person with the highest speed and who used a dagger class weapon. You were the only person in SAO to ever max out their speed, and it was only fitting as it matched your nickname. I'm transferring it to your NerveGear, so you can download it to your machine now."

"I can already turn myself invisible in Alfheim, why would I need it there?"

"Do you remember what the benefits of using that ability were?"

Toshi nodded. "Yeah, I turn invisible, see invisible objects, and can't be detected by awareness." Kayaba waited, letting the facts sink in. Finally, Toshi figured it out, and nodded. "Right, it's better, sorry."

"No offense taken." Kayaba replied. "Now, the second objective."

"What's that?"

"It's a message that the Cardinal system failed to deliver to you from your sister."

 _What?!_

"What, really?! Play it!" Toshiyan exclaimed.

Suddenly, Kayaba began to disappear, sinking into the ground. Toshi realized what was happening, and began to panic.

"Kayaba! Don't you dare!"

Kayaba suddenly vanished completely, leaving Toshiyan all alone.

"Kayaba!" Toshiyan's voice echoed as he yelled. Toshi slumped to his knees. _So, he gives me these compliments, and my old ability, but doesn't let me hear the recording of my sister. Great._

"Hello? Is this thing working?" an all too familiar voice asked. Toshi paused. _I know that voice._

He looked up and saw another figure in front of him. There stood Lyn, fiddling with a crystal. She was garbed in her Knights of the Bliod Oath garb, sitting down on a chair that he recognized to be from her in game home.

"Well, regulation says that I should do this, though I don't think I'll ever need it. At any rate, Toshimaru, hi." She giggled a little bit after saying this. "Sorry, this is, kinda weird for me, I haven't ever done this before."

Toshiyan walked around the figure, so that it looked and felt like she was facing him. She looked so real, yet Toshiyan knew that it was just a hologram.

"Well, if your seeing this, then I'm most likely dead. I won't be long, but I do have some requests. First: take care of mom and dad. They'll need you if I don't make it. Second: Toshi, I know you. If I die, regardless of the cause, please don't blame yourself. And don't pretend like you wouldn't, I've known you for 17 long, yet amazing years. Please, keep living on for me."

Toshiyan stared dumbfounded at the hologram. _She's here. She's actually here!_

"Toshi, you'll never hear me say this out loud, but I've always admired you. I know, it's weird, but it's true. You know me the best out of anyone, and you are willing to stand up to me, when I get bossy and argumentative on occasion. You helped to balance me out, and I appreciate that."

Toshiyan smiled, his eyes getting watery again.

"Look, at any rate, I want to thank you. For, being there for me, for letting me tease you, for doing all the little things, even if I was too stubborn to do them myself. Look, I love you, and even if you were the one to accidentally shove me off the castle of Aincrad, nothing would ever change that. Anyway, I have to actually find where you are now, you jerk, leaving without telling me where you were. Not cool! At any rate, just, be good, like I know you can. I'll see you around!"

The hologram disappeared, leaving Toshiyan all alone again. A lone tear streaking down his left cheek. He smiled. _I will, Lyn._

"Kayaba, you're an idiot, but thank you, for this!"

No response came, but he didn't care. He swiped for his menu and logged out.

Toshi woke up to something on his left cheek. He swiped at it, and noticed that it was a tear. He sat up, removing the NerveGear, staring at the moisture in his fingers. _Huh, I guess the real and virtual worlds are different after all._

He glanced at his alarm clock, and smiled. _Man today is just getting better and better._

He got off of his bed and grabbed his keys. He hurried to his car, and began the drive to the hospital. It was 11:32, and this was the time when the officers said to check with them on Shino.

He arrived at the hospital in a relatively short amount of time. He dashed into a waiting room, where a variety of people were waiting, but he went towards a nurse.

"Excuse me, but do you know where Shino Asada is?"

The nurse smiled. "You know, you're the second person to ask me that today. I just looked her up, she's in room 242."

"Thank you," Toshi replied. He snagged an elevator just in time, and pressed for the second floor. He was stopped by a person on the first floor, who came in with him.

"Floor two, please." she said quietly.

"That works, I'm already on my way there." Toshi replied.

The doors closed and they ascended to the next floor. The woman next to him looked to be in her 40's, she was probably coming to visit someone.

"Who are you coming to visit?" Toshi asked, attempting to break the ice.

"Oh, I'm visiting my daughter."

"Cool, I'm visiting my, er, lady friend."

"Sounds fun," she replied.

The doors opened and they both exited the elevator, taking different paths. He followed the signs, until finally, he was on the right hallway. He was walking towards it, until he came across the same person he met in the elevator just moments before. They both stopped in front of room 242, puzzled.

"Wait, you're here to see Shino too?" Toshi asked surprised.

"Wait, the officer did say that I was going to need to let someone else in. I'm her mother, you must be Mr. Yanada, right?"

"Call me Toshi, so, should we go in?"

"Yes," she replied. She then unlocked the door, and opened it. Inside, Shino lay with the NerveGear still on her head. "Have a seat, I want to have a chat."

 _Oh no!_

"Of course," Toshi replied cheerfully, taking a seat.

"So, Toshi, you've dated my daughter, correct?"

"Well, yeah. I have a couple of times."

"Good, well Shino talks a lot about you."

"Really, what has she said?"

"She told me about you, how you were in SAO."

 _I'm dead. I can just defenestrate* myself right now._

"R-Really?"

"Yes," she continued. "She also said that you were one of the greatest, kindest, and sweetest people she's ever met." She smiled. "You know, she's really fond of you, and I've never seen her happier."

Toshi sighed in relief. "Thank you, that actually means a lot."

Suddenly two other people walked in, an officer, and a doctor. "Hello, glad you could make it." the officer said.

"So, is she good?" Toshi asked.

"Well, that's why he's here." the officer replied.

"She should be fine," the doctor added. "The NerveGear was only designed to kill people in SAO."

"Well, he's the doc. That means my work is done too. You can take it off when you're ready."

"Thank you doctor." Shino's mother said. When the two personnel left, Shino's mother turned to him. "Ready?"

"Yeah."

She unplugged the chord and the NerveGear deactivated. Shino's eyes opened, and she took the NerveGear off.

"Shino, are you alright?" Toshi asked.

Shino looked around, first at Toshi, then at her mother. "You're here?" Shino asked, surprised

"Of course, sweetie." her mother replied. "I came as soon as I heard. You didn't think a little introversion could keep me away, did you?"

"Well, it's just that, you hardly visit."

"I consider this a special occasion, besides, I got to meet your boyfriend."

"Wait, you didn't-"

"He's pretty good, hold onto him for a while."

"MOM!"

Toshi laughed a little. "It's all good."

Shino turned her attention to Toshi. "Sorry, hold on." she turned back to her mother. "Mom, can you give us a minute?"

"But-"

"Please?"

"Fine, I'll get out, don't be too long."

She left the room, leaving Toshi with Shino. He smiled. "Hey,"

"Hey," she replied. "I probably look awful."

"If by awful, you mean jaw-dropping gorgeous, then you look terrible."

She smiled, blushing. "Well, thank you." There was a silence for a while, but then she had a question. "How did you find me?"

"Well, Kazuto and I were able to track down Kyouji's brother. He was very helpful, and he told us where you were. After that, we had to go through some mercenaries that Kyouji hired, that's when we found you. After that, I figured out that you were in a warehouse nearby a hospital. He and I had a beat down, and I was able to get you here."

She stared at him, with a curious look. "You did all that for me?"

"Well, actually I did it for your cute hair." Toshi joked.

"Really?" Shino asked, gesturing to her messy hair. "Did you get what you bargained for?"

Toshi knelt down, so that he was level with Shino's head. "That, and the most beautiful girl known to the planet."

She was blushing furiously, looking down. Toshi pulled her head so that she was facing him. He leaned in to kiss her, when they were interrupted by the door.

"It's been exactly a minute!" Shino's mother exclaimed as she threw the door open. Toshi launched himself to his feet, but threw himself backwards accidentally. He launched himself into the chair nearby, which fell to the floor with him on it. Shino glared at her mother.

"Really mom?" she yelled.

"What, what'd I do?"

"You physically hurt him!"

"He'll recover," she continued. "Probably."

 _One month later..._

"I can't do it." Kazuto exclaimed.

"Come on man!" Klein replied. "You already did the hardest part, now, you just have to get through the ceremony."

"I can't get married!" Kazuto commented.

"Really?" Toshi said. "You're just going to leave Asuna at the altar?"

"No, it's just, I don't know!"

 _Wow, Kazuto can beat any video game, cut bullets midair, and wield the sword Excalibur, but he can't get married? Yeesh, he could do this in his sleep!_

"If you don't know, then don't worry about it." Klein continued. "You just show up, get hitched, then-"

"I'm going to stop you there Klein." Toshi interrupted. "Look, Kazuto, I know you love Asuna, right?"

"Of course I do!"

"And she loves you, right?"

"Though I don't know why, yes?"

"So what's the problem?" Klein added.

"Well, since day one, I've always been a solo player. I'm still not sure if I can do this alone."

"Well, it's a good thing that you're getting married then." Toshi concluded. "You don't have to."

Klein opened the door, gesturing for Kazuto to go through. "You ready Kazuto?" he asked.

He nodded. "I can do this."

"That's the spirit!" Klein responded energetically.

 _So help me Kazuto, if you chicken out, I will paralyze you to the point that you'll never log out of ALO again!_

In the chapel, people were talking, while Kazuto stood with the priest in the front. Toshi, along with the other groomsmen were standing below him. On the other side, the bridesmaids stood. They were wearing an assortment of dark blue dresses. He paid especial attention to Shino, who wore her hair down with a slight curl.

"Wait, what do I say again?" Kazuto asked, snapping Toshi out of his daze.

 _I swear, he's going to give himself an ulcer!_

"Kazuto, for the third time, just let him read, and say I do, then you're done!" Toshi stated.

"Okay, I can do this."

"Yeah, you got this."

Then, a hush fell over the crowd, and the music began to play. At the other end of the aisle, a figure with a white dress appeared. She proceeded down the aisle, and the crowd stood up. There was no flower girl, but the procession still went wonderfully. When she arrived to his side, the priest began.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered together today to celebrate the matrimony of these two fine individuals, namely Kazuto Kirigaya and Asuna Yuuki. I'll be brief, but I will say how blessed you are. There were many tests of love, but you proved victorious. As such, you are very lucky you know. Many find love late in life, but you were able to find it so young. There are many trials ahead of you, but if you are patient, and love one another, you can persist through any trial."

He turned his attention to Asuna. "Do you, miss Asuna take Kazuto to be your lawfully wedded husband, come what may, to love and cherish for as long as you shall live?"

"I do,"

"Good, and do you, Kazuto, take Asuna to be your lawfully wedded wife, come what may, to love and cherish for as long as you shall live?"

"I do," Kazuto replied.

"Then if there are no objections, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss."

Both Kazuto and Asuna kissed and the entire chapel erupted into applause. Toshi smiled.

 _You did good, swordsman. You did good._

At the reception, there was much chatter while Kazuto and Asuna met with the guests. Toshi looked around, trying to find Shino, but couldn't find her. _Where is she?_ He walked into the dance floor, where there were couples dancing with each other, and even Kazuto got a chance to dance with his new wife. However, he looked like the only person that didn't have a date.

He was checking the garden area for his girlfriend, when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He smiled turning to face Shino.

"Hey, I was looking for you. Do you wanna dance?"

"Maybe later, but Asuna and Kazuto wanna talk." Shino replied.

"Alright,"

Shino led Toshi towards the main hall, and they saw Kazuto waving them over.

"Glad we could find you, we were worried you left."

"No, what did you need?"

"Well," Asuna stated. "We were talking, and we talked about you and how you helped us both."

"Really? I didn't help that much."

"You gave us advice, and it helped us communicate better, and it was just what the doctor ordered." she continued.

"Guys, it's nothing, I was just trying to help."

"Well, we thought we needed to give you something."

"Guys, it's your wedding day, I should be getting you guys stuff."

"Well, we invited some friends of yours."

"Huh, who?"

"Why don't you turn around and find out?" a voice said. Toshi spun around, and saw two faces: His mother, and his father. He needed the assistance of a cane to get around, but Toshi gasped in excitement at the sight of his father.

"Dad, you're okay!" he exclaimed, rushing to his father. "When did you get out of the hospital?"

"A couple of days ago, your friends wanted to surprise you. But I don't recognize this fine young lady."

Toshi slapped his forehead. "Right, mom and dad, this is Shino, she's my girlfriend."

"Pleasure to meet you both." Shino said.

"Pleasure to meet you as well." Toshi's father said.

"You should come over some time." his mother added. "I could break out some of Toshi's baby pictures."

"MOM!" Toshi exclaimed in frustration.

Toshi's father let out a hearty laugh. "Alright, let's leave him be. He deserves some time with his girl, but you will bring her on your visits?"

"Absolutely, if she wants." Toshi replied.

"I would love to."

"Excellent, now Toshi, behave yourself." his father chastened.

"I will," he replied. When his parents walked off, he turned to thank Kazuto and Asuna, but they had wandered off somewhere else. He smiled at Shino. "So, about that dance?"

She giggled. "Sure,"

 _I think I get it now. I realized why everything happened to me the way it did. Bad things can happen to anyone, and no individual is exempt. I tried to hide, but drove myself crazy trying. I can't always stop bad people from doing bad things, but I can forgive them. After all, the price of forgiveness has, and always will be, both the greatest thing to give, and the smallest price to pay._

* * *

 ***Defenestrate; Verb; to throw oneself out of a window.* You learn something new everyday.**

 **Wait.**

 **It's done,**

 **I, can't believe it. I finished my SAO fanfic. It seems like only yesterday that the little kid had an idea. It seems so close, but I feel I've come so far. But I couldn't have done it without you all.**

 **Thanks to all of the followers, who were patient with me.**

 **Followers:**

 **Batprime**

 **Beastmode6798**

 **CaptainSenchoPete**

 **DLBot2016**

 **DatBoiPanther**

 **Disturbedpie**

 **FrolickingFlamingoes**

 **GM12**

 **Game Lord The Hitman**

 **Grimraven.V**

 **Hero King Gilgamesh**

 **N7 Recurit**

 **Opposite Dragon**

 **Pokemaster105**

 **ShadowMario3**

 **Shadowranger5225**

 **Tf2Scout**

 **TheWeav3**

 **Vain Nakamura**

 **XxIqmalxX**

 **doctor3378**

 **Flacoelpollo**

 **Jamin 1227**

 **melanniaramos74**

 **mrmugrootbeer**

 **tehg2000**

 **tl34lt12**

 **Favorites are like, the coolest. Thanks to all of you!**

 **Favorites:**

 **Batprime**

 **CaptainSenchoPete**

 **DinosaurKing2002**

 **Disturbedpie**

 **FrolickingFlamingoes**

 **Grimraven.V**

 **Hero King Gilgamesh**

 **Opposite Dragon**

 **Pokemaster105**

 **ShadowMario3**

 **Subtility**

 **Tf2Scout**

 **Vain Nakamura**

 **XxIqmalxX**

 **ZeroXheroic**

 **doctor3378**

 **jamesforonda6**

 **.75**

 **melanniaramos74**

 **mrmugrootbeer**

 **snowbox32**

 **tehg2000**

 **tl34lt12**

 **(I apologize if any are spelled wrong)**

 **Special thanks to:**

 **TheSib, for taking time to read my story, even though he has plenty on his plate**

 **tl34It12, for reviewing, liking, and supporting my story.**

 **Shadowranger5225, for listening to me rant about this weirdo named Toshi**

 **Grammatical error reviews and haters, for teaching me I'm not perfect.**

 **Thank you all so much for what you did. I'm so grateful, at any rate, leave a review on what you think the morals to this story are. Favorite this story, or pass the message on. I bid you all farewell, see you on my other fanfics!**

 **Zippy**


End file.
